


Razor's Edge

by Prince_Darkcloud, UnshadowedHeart



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Domestic Violence, Grubs, Incest, M/M, Minor Character Death, Mpreg, Prison, Rape, Sober Gamzee, Stillbirth, Substance Abuse, Underage Drinking, Xeno, dubcon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-09-19
Updated: 2016-03-16
Packaged: 2017-12-27 02:20:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 13
Words: 46,030
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/973144
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prince_Darkcloud/pseuds/Prince_Darkcloud, https://archiveofourown.org/users/UnshadowedHeart/pseuds/UnshadowedHeart
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Tavros probably never thought that by simply going for a walk, he'd bring something into his life that would change things forever. Now sharing one of the off-campus houses, Tavros, roommate Dave, free-loader Gamzee, and dormer Karkat have yet to realize that the four of their lives are practically cemented together for the next 15 years, for better and for worse, through thick and thin, through death and birth.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Morning Walks and Midnight Wetdreams

**Author's Note:**

> So we wrote this over a year ago, and I figured it was high time to post it. A lot happens in these 28 chapters, so hang in there.

Tavros was in the middle of sorting out a few boxes in his new room, running outside quickly to go get more from the moving truck. He didn't have a lot of stuff to move, really, but he did need to get everything done quickly. He was so excited! He was moving into a small house with his friend who had been kind enough to offer the room while he still went to school.

Dave was helping him move all of his junk out of the uhaul, as he had absolutely nothing better to do with his Sunday morning. He was kind of glad to have found a roommate, cause that meant expenses were cut in half, but that also meant a whole lot less privacy. "We almost done?"

"Uh, yeah, that's it I think," Tavros replied with a shy smile as he pulled the last of his boxes up to his new room. "Thanks so much for letting me stay with you Dave, it means a lot!" He sighed and wiped his hands on his pants, looking up at the other. "What do we do now?"

Dave clapped his hands together, trying to get off any offending dirt. "Well, it's the school's house, not mine, so I'm not really letting you stay with me, but whatever. It's cool. I'm gonna get back to working my mix tape. Shit's so sweet your ears'll explode before you even hear the first beat drop."

Tavros smiled wide and nodded, waving at the boy. "Alright! I think I'm gonna go out on a walk for a bit... Uh, just to clear my head. I'll be back soon!" Maybe he'd even see a cute girl on his outing. He wondered if he would have the confidence to talk to her...

Dave gave a brief nod before heading into his room and closing the door, the sounds of blaring music seeping through the walls a few moments later.

Going to get his music player and his jacket, Tavros hopped out of the little flat and started walking down the street, still thinking about if he would bump into a cute girl. Well, not actually bump... He'd be too scared for that. Oh well.

However, instead of running into a cute girl, he ran into pretty much the exact opposite. "Huh? Holy motherfuck, Tavros? Is that you bro? Man, it's been too motherfuckin looong! I knew Karkat was comin here, but I had no fuckin clue you'd be here too! Talk about a motherfuckin miracle!"

Tavros was surprised to see his older friend from high school there. "Oh, uh, hi, Gamzee!" he stammered out shyly, smiling at the taller troll. "It's good to see you! How have you been?" he asked as he continued to walk, now with Gamzee walking beside him. God, he forgot how tall the other was!

"Well, I tried to do the whole school thing, but those motherfuckers were tryin to put all these thoughts and words in my head and they were real motherfuckin dream crushers, man. Weren't no miracles. So I left." He grinned a slow, lazy grin, showing off his sharp rows of teeth. "And other stuff happened, but fuck, I don't remember half of what happened...Just tryin to find a motherfuckin job..."

It seemed like Gamzee was still on the sopor... Tavros nodded along with his words. "Really? I could help you find a job, if you needed it. Why don't you come over to the house with me and you can stay a couple nights! Um, uh, unless you already have a place to stay, sorry..."

"Tavros, you are the best motherfurckin friend a dude could have." He wrapped an arm around the shoulders of the much smaller man, having to bend a little to reach.

Tavros smiled and hugged back. "It's no problem. Come on, let's go back to my place. I only just unloaded today. But, um, I guess you could sleep in my room if you're willing to help me unpack?" He didn't mind sharing a bed with Gamzee; he wasn't at all a bed hog or anything.

Gamzee's grin spread even wider, but he didn't say anything. Getting a free place to stay and free food plus getting to sleep in Tav's bed? He was happier than he would've been if he'd encountered a lifetime supply of sopor and faygo.

Tavros smiled and pulled Gamzee along back to the little flat he now called his home. "My roommate is Dave, uh... Do you remember him?" He blushed slightly and let them both into the apartment.

Gamzee's face fell into a flat frown. The name irked him, but he couldn't remember why. As soon as they opened the door, Gamzee could hear a really sick rhyme coming from somewhere in the house. The way the sound vibrated through the walls made him feel like he'd transcended. He closed his eyes and held out his hands, smiling goofily as he followed the sound, letting the god of miracles or whatever do their motherfucking job and lead him to the source of the sound.

"Oh, um, Gamzee! We shouldn't disturb Dave while he's working..." Tavros blushed and tugged Gamzee towards his room. "Why don't you help me unpack, alright?" he then started to work on opening up a few boxes here and there. "It'll be really nice to have you here for a couple days."

"Hey, Tav, Man, don't interrupt the motherfuckin flow of the miracle, brother." He was about to continue following the sound when the idea of poking into boxes piqued his interest.

Tavros smiled softly and just went about to unpack all his boxes. He already had his bed set up, so there was no need to rush and get everything done before bedtime. "It's going to be so nice having you around, Gamzee."

"Yeah, it'll be real cool hanging out with one of my favorite motherfuckers." Gamzee had opened one of the larger boxes filled with bedding and had his entire upper half inside it. "So motherfuckin soft, bro..." His voice was muffled by all the down.

Tavros couldn't help a shaky laugh. "W-wow, Gamzee, you must be pretty high..." But that was okay, Tavros didn't mind. Gamzee was a lot easier to deal with when he was high off his ass anyway! Though Tavros hadn't actually spent much time with him while he was off the sopor, but he'd heard it wasn't pleasant from others.

"Well, I had a half a pie before I left and I always carry some on me too. I had some...couple seconds before you ran into me...haha I don't quite remember." He took the bedding out of the box. "Which way?"

Tavros smile and waved Gamzee over to his bed. "This way. It's alright, at least you can still function." Better than most people at least.

"Woooaaah...bro, where'd you go? You learned how to motherfucking disappear and you didn't even tell me." In reality, the bedding was just blocking his vision, but he kept on trucking in the direction he thought was the bedroom.

Tavros laughed and took Gamzee's hand. "Come on, this way." He led him up to the bedroom, giggling softly.

Gamzee's grin spread even broader when he felt Tavros' hand wrap around his own. It was so warm and it felt so perfect wrapped up in his long, slender hand. "It's like we're on our motherfuckin honeymoon."

Tavros blushed, and shook his head at those words. Gamzee was so silly sometimes. He showed him to the bedroom and tugged the bedding off. "There we go..."

Gamzee walked over to the bed and flopped down on top of the firm mattress. This was good enough, right? It sure was comfortable enough. He nuzzled his face into the comforter, smearing his face paint a bit.

Tavros was a little annoyed that Gamzee was smearing his face paint all over the comforter, but oh well... He smiled awkwardly. "Hey, Gamzee, come on, we need to unpack other stuff too."

Gamzee sat up, not really seeing the need to unpack the other boxes, but if it was what Tavros wanted, then he'd be happy to. "Alright, brother, lead the way."

Tavros smile and reached up to help tidy up Gamzee's smeared makeup. It just looked silly all striped across his face like that. He skimmed off what he could and helped it back to the original pattern, though not quiet as large as before. "There."

Gamzee smiled, practically purring like a happy cat at the attention he was receiving. "Thanks, brother." He placed his hand over Tavros' and nuzzled against it.

The smaller troll could only laugh and smile. He loved it when Gamzee was cheeky and cuddly. He was such a good friend! "Well, come on, we had better get the rest of the stuff unpacked. And that was what they did for the rest of the night, until Tavros' new room looked partially inhabitable. The smaller troll yawned softly and sat on his bed. "I think I'm ready for bed, what about you?"

Gamzee flopped down next to Tavros and wrapped himself around the smaller boy like a living inner tube. "We gotta cuddle first, brother! Ya can't forget the motherfuckin cuddling." He'd made himself one of his special pies about half an hour ago and it was finally hitting him.

Tavros giggled and awkwardly wrapped his arms around Gamzee in return. "Okay, well, we gotta get to sleep soon, alright?" He leaned over and turned the lights off before he worked his way under the comforter and the blankets.

Gamzee wrapped himself around Tavros, nuzzling his face into his hair. It had been one long stream of motherfuckin miracles that day, running into Tavros, spending the day with him and then winding up curled up in his bed. He couldn't be happier. But the sopor was probably heightening his elation on top of that. "Hey, Tavros..."

"Yeah, Gamzee?" Tavros asked with another yawn, starting to get comfortable even with the lanky boy wrapped around his petite body. He wondered what it could be now... Probably about miracles.

He pushed himself up and flopped over Tavros' body so he could look into the boy's face. "Wanna make out a little?"

Gamzee's forwardness made the smaller troll blush. "Wh-what?" he squeaked, covering his mouth. But...he didn't like guys! He preferred girls! He knew there wasn't much of a difference, what with their hermaphroditic culture, but he really did prefer girls...

Gamzee leaned in closer, making sure that Tavros would hear him this time. "I said: wanna make out a little, brother?"

"G-Gamzee, I don't know... I mean, you're my friend," Tavros whispered, gulping nervously. Was Gamzee flushed for him? Oh gosh... He wasn't sure if he could handle that! Gamzee was his best friend; he had just thought they had been leaning towards a pale romance! Though neither of them had actually come out and asked for it...

"So we can't make out, even a little?" Gamzee let his head fall back onto the mattress, but he didn't move from where he was draped over Tavros. He was disappointed sure, but he wasn't completely deterred from his goal.

"W-well... Um... Uhhh..." Tavros' cheeks were flushed dark brown. "I-I... Um..." Oh gosh, he wasn't sure what to say! "I-I don't know, Gamzee..."

Gamzee gave a sleepy grin. He really wanted to just lean forward and take Tavros' lips, but even when he was high as hell, he knew when to give his bro his space. He pushed himself off Tavros and pulled him back against him, satisfied with just having the boy close.

Tavros felt bad now and squirmed. "Um...hey, if you really want to," he whispered, unsure of how to go about it. "I m-mean...um..."

Gamzee had already passed out, tired from the long day. His face had relaxed and he was snoring gently. He hummed gently as he dreamed away.

"Oh...um, okay, Gamzee...night." Tavros sighed and smiled awkwardly before he turned on his side and drifted off to sleep. In the morning he would tell Dave that Gamzee was going to stay with them for a couple days... Hopefully that would go over well.

\- - -

Gamzee blinked his eyes opened. His body was telling him that it was definitely too early to be awake. He was about to fall back asleep when he heard a gentle whimper.

"Hey, you okay brother?"

Tavros wasn't responding, still fast asleep, though obviously having some sort of dream. He was breathing a little too hard, face flushed with rusty blood as his hips awkwardly gyrated down onto the mattress from where he lay on his stomach. He couldn't lie on his sides like he wanted because of his horns... Oh well.

Gamzee stared a moment, watching as Tavros ground against the mattress. When it finally clicked what he was doing, a grin broke out on his face. He reached beneath Tavros and slipped his hand inside the loose waistband, gently palming the base of the throbbing bonebuldge, finger tickling over Tavros' moist nook.

The smaller troll mewled as his sensitive seedflap was touched, hips twitching down to try and gain more of the touch. He couldn't exactly understand what was happening in his sleep, but his body definitely liked it.

Gamzee pulled away for a second before climbing on top of Tavros, lying flush against his back before his hands went back inside Tavros' pants, 2 fingers slipping inside the wet warmth while his other hand worked the needy member.

Tavros' twitching bulge twisted in Gamzee's hand, the troll mewling and moaning in his sleep as he tossed his, horns bumping against the wall every now and then. He had a rather well sized, thick bulge, the tentacle-like appendage writhing and twisting in pleasure, flushed with the color of his blood.

Gamzee wished he could see everything, but he didn't want to risk waking Tavros up in the middle. Plus, the giant horns would've just made it troublesome. He ground his own twitching bulge down against Tavros, moaning quietly with the pleasure.

The smaller troll trembled greatly beneath Gamzee, Tavros' whimpered and arched his back up into the hips grinding down on his shame globes. "Awhhhnnn..." The bed began to creak a little with the force of his humping, entire body trembling as he neared his orgasm.

Gamzee wasn't nearly as close to cumming as the troll beneath him was, but this wasn't about him. He inserted a third finger and sped up his other hand, working hard to bring Tav to his peak.

Tavros came with a muffled mewl, back arced and his entire body going rigid as he came, his genetic material spilling into his underwear and down all over his bed. Being trolls and all, they had...well...a substantial amount of genetic material.

Gamzee slowly and carefully withdrew his hands from Tavros' pants, his hands and part of his forearms covered in the rust-colored fluids. He rolled off Tavros and stared at his hands for a moment before leaning in and taking a lick. Well, it wasn't sopor, but he was sure he could get addicted to it.


	2. Relationshits

The next morning, Dave was sitting at the table reading a newspaper and drinking his coffee like one hell of a classy motherfucker, if he said so himself. He'd stayed up late working on his ill beats, but when he'd tried to go to sleep there was a persistent knocking on the walls that had kept him awake. He was going to confront Tavros about it the second he got up.

Tavros had been the first to wake up. Embarrassingly enough, he was mortified to find himself awake in a puddle of his genetic fluid. At least Gamzee wasn't up... He quickly moved the other and changed the sheets and went to take a shower, face flushed awkwardly. Oh god, how embarrassing... He couldn't quite remember the dream he'd had the night before, but he remembered it being...vivid.

Gamzee blinked his eyes open, sitting up and being somewhat surprised that he wasn't in the bed anymore. He looked over at the bed and saw that it had been stripped of its sheets, and it puzzled him. It was then that he started to feel a headache coming on. He looked around quickly for his bag; he was sobering up and needed a pie pronto.

Tavros returned soon with clean sheets, squeaking as he saw that Gamzee was already awake. "Oh, um, h-hey, Gamzee... Um, bro, I had to change the sheets, they were...uh...really itchy all night, I c-couldn't sleep, you know..." Oh gosh, he wished he were more confident... This was the time he really, really needed it!

Gamzee was licking his lips, having just scarfed down one of his pies. He looked up at Tavros and grinned. "It's cool, brother. It was all that motherfuckin fluid that probably made you itch." He said it as if it was nothing, continuing to lick off his hands

Tavros looked horrified. "Wh-what!? Um, G-Gamzee..." Oh god, did Gamzee know? He wouldn't be able to face his friend if he realized that Gamzee had been sleeping in bed _with_ him when he had...those sorts of dreams.

Gamzee stood up, going over to Tavros and placing a hand on his shoulder, bending over till they were eye-to-eye. "It's motherfuckin, cool, brother." 

Tavros gulped and nodded, then brushed past his friend to put the new sheets on. "I'm, uh, gonna go down for breakfast," he mumbled, stumbling over his words awkwardly. He left the room and nervously hopped down the stairs to see Dave in the kitchen. "Morning, Dave!"

Dave looked over at Tavros over the top of his paper, his sunglasses hiding his tired looking eyes. "What the hell were you doing last night? You were thumping and bumping about. I couldn't sleep."

Oh god, Dave too!? Tavros' face flushed darkly once more. "W-well...um..." Should he really tell Dave the truth? ...Of course not. "Oh, I had a hard time sleeping, and, um, my bed kept hitting the wall when I moved... Sorry. I'll move my bed."

Dave's face didn't change, but he didn't believe a word Tavros said, the guy was a shitty liar. "You know, if you had some sort of late night shenanigans, I don't care, just keep it down and don't bring her to breakfast."

"Oh, well...um... I kind of wanted to...talk to you about...something." Tavros played with his fingers and twiddled his thumbs awkwardly. "See, um, I ran into this friend of mine on my walk yesterday...and..."

Like an actor waiting for their queue, Gamzee strutted into the kitchen, yawning and scratching his stomach. When he opened his eyes, they landed on the face of a rather irksome fellow.

"Riiiight, now I remember why the name Dave pisses me off so much, cause of this motherfucker."

"The displeasure is mutual."

"O-oh gosh, I'm really sorry you guys..." He knew they didn't like each other. That was so rude of him to just invite Gamzee into Dave's home. Or the home he was occupying anyway. He turned to Dave, planning to plead with him, "Gamzee doesn't have anywhere else to stay and he's looking for a job, can he please stay with us for a couple days?"

A vein was starting to pop out on Dave's forehead out of irritation, but the rest of his face remained unchanging. "If he doesn't start paying a third of our rent in the next 3 weeks he's out of here on his ass." Dave closed his paper, neatly folding it and placing it on the table before sauntering out. Loosing his cool was simply out of the question for someone like Dave.

Tavros sighed with relief and threw his arms around Dave. "Thank you so much, Dave!" Dave was such a good friend. He released him so he could go back to Gamzee. "We should start looking for a job after breakfast, okay?"

"It's too early to be lookin for jobs, brother. But tomorrow will be a motherfuckin perfect day to look for one." Gamzee headed for the fridge, rummaging around, looking for nothing in particular.

"Oh, um...alright." Tavros didn't see why today wasn't a good day... He sighed and went to start making them all breakfast. He figured some featherbeast eggs and oinkbeast meat would make a nice breakfast! He started to cook with a hum and a smile, just imagining being able to give everyone a wonderful breakfast...

Gamzee stood over his shoulder, watching every movement. He laid his chin down on Tavros' shoulder. "Is it ready yet?"

It was amusing how far down Gamzee had to lean to get to Tavros' level. "Not yet," he said as he finished up the eggs and then worked on the bacon. When he was done he served everyone up a plate and dolled it out. "There we go, everyone eat up!"

Upon realizing that the offending troll wouldn't be leaving any time soon, Dave had vacated the kitchen, and probably wouldn't be back around until he knew Gamzee wasn't there any longer.

"Oh..." Tavros sighed. He hadn't even noticed Dave left. Oh well. He supposed Dave was just that cool! He wished he could be as cool as Dave sometimes... "Well, I'll just wrap it up and put it in the fridge." Dave had to be hungry every once in a while, even cool people weren't exempt from that!

"Or you could give it to me." Gamzee held out a hand as he smiled at Tavros lazily from where he sat at the table.

“Oh, okay... Here you go," he said with a slightly nervous laugh, handing the other plate to Gamzee. "I hope you like it, then..."

Gamzee took a large bite out of the peculiar human meat known as "bacon" and chewed thoughtfully. "It's like a motherfuckin miracle, brother." He scooped some of the eggs into his mouth, barely bothering to chew as he shoved the food in his mouth. When was the last time he'd eaten anything besides his pies? He couldn't remember...

Gamzee had always been lanky and thin, but Tavros noticed he was looking more so than usual. "When was the last time you ate a real meal, Gamzee?" he asked as he touched his friend's arm. He worried about him; he really did... Always high, stuffing his face full of pies, never worrying about the things that _needed_ to be worried over...

Gamzee chuckled a little bit, rubbing his chin as he thought. "I can't seem to remember. It's all thanks to the motherfuckin miracles I'm alive."

"Well, if you say so..." Should they talk about what had apparently happened during the night...? Oh gosh, here goes, he was being confident in himself! "Um, G-Gamzee, about...uh...y'know...the..sheets..." Yeah. So confident.

"Hm? Ohhh...right...yeah, my bad, brother." He kept shoveling food into his mouth.

"H-hunh...but...um...should I be the one...apologizing?" Oh gosh, had Gamzee been the one who did that!? But Gamzee's blood color was a lot higher than his! He had to be at least indigo... That genetic fluid was most definitely chocolate brown.

"Naw, brother, don't worry that little head of yours." He ruffled Tavros' hair. "It was my bad, don't worry bout it."

"Hunh? But...I don't..." Had Gamzee...? Oh gosh! He wasn't sure if he liked that or not... Gamzee was his friend and all, but he wasn't...he wasn't flushed for him! At least, he didn't think so...

"Hm? Don't what?" Gamzee finished off the last of his food and moved on to Dave's. He was confused about what Tavros was so flustered about. He knew that the boy had always been fidgety, but now he was even having trouble getting his words out.

"Um...Gamzee, last night, did I, uh... You know... Have a...flushed...dream?" He wasn't entirely sure what the hell he was supposed to call it, but goddamn, did he want answers. "I mean- I d-did, but...did you..."

"I don't know what you were dreamin about, brother, but you were enjoyin yourself." He finished off Dave's food and stood up from the table, stretching and starting to walk away.

"That's not what I- ohhh..." Tavros groaned and sighed, looking down at his food. He started to pick at it awkwardly. Maybe he would just go up to Gamzee a little later...

Gamzee stepped out of the tiny house and looked around, trying to remember which way the school was. He was pretty sure that his friend still lived in the dorms. Ah well, he'd leave it to the power of the motherfuckin miracles to get him there.

Tavros saw Gamzee walk out the door, but he didn't stop him. Maybe it was better that he was going. He was sure he'd be back. Gamzee always seemed to be able to make it back all on his own, even when he was baked to high heavens.

 _'Ahh...found it...'_ Gamzee walked inside the dorm, getting all sorts of odd looks from the other students, but not paying them any mind. His friend had told him the room number...what was it now...

Gamzee knocked on the door of room 269. "Honk, honk!" He called, like some sort of living doorbell.

"What the fuck do you want, fucknuts!? You were supposed to be here yesterday!" The door opened to reveal a surly looking troll who was so much shorter than Gamzee he rivaled Tavros' height. But he wasn't that small, he had some dignity after all. Well, he called it dignity.

"Hey, K! How's my best motherfuckin bro in the whole motherfuckin world doin?" He wrapped an arm around Karkat's shoulders.

Karkat shoved Gamzee's arm off and yanked him inside by his ear. "You're like a goddamn child, I can't even fucking rely on you to get here the _day_ you say you'll get here! Not like you could leave a fucking message and say 'oh hey Karkat I'm gonna be twenty hours late'." He closed the dorm door behind them with a scowl.

"Hey, hey, it’s good, ain’t kicked it or gone to join the bitches in the choir invisible." Gamzee winced as his ear was tugged. He had to walk practically bent over because Karkat was so much shorter than he was. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he smiled sheepishly, "I ran into Tavros on the way there and uhh...."

"What!? Why the fUCK WOULDN'T YOU TELL ME ABOUT THAT SOONER YOUR NOOKSNIFFING BULGEMUNCHER!?" Karkat's voice, even when it was normally loud, got even louder. He knew they would be drifting into a territory he knew all too much; relationships. And while he was intrigued and knew quite a lot about them, they irritated him to no end.

"Well, I kinda forgot." He scratched the back of his head a little. "Why don't ya chill out a bit, brother, I bought some faygo on my way over." He held up the plastic bag as proof.

"Ugh, whatever." Karkat took his seat on the couch and crossed his arms, waiting for Gamzee to come sit beside him. "Well, tell me what you did with Tavros, fuckass."

Gamzee walked behind the couch and stepped over the back, sitting on the back with his feet on the cushion. He twisted off the cap to one of his faygo bottles and took a swig. "We went on a walk, and we slept together, then he fed me...ahh, I hadn't eaten in a while...it was really good..."

"You sLEPT TOGETHER!?" Karkat screeched, his voice bouncing off the walls. "What the fuck were you thinking!?" Take it from Karkat to overreact...

"Yeah, there are only two beds and that sack of taint-cheese Dave's in one, so I slept with Tav in the other." He really didn't see why Karkat was getting so hyped up about it. Well, there had been that late night molesting thing....

"...Oh. You slept in the same bed. Clarify next time, fucknuts." Despite how he was the one partially at fault for jumping to conclusions... But still. "Are you stilling carrying the torch for that sniveling wriggler?"

"I guess so...it's been a long time, if I think about it..." He couldn't remember a time he hadn't had a crush on the adorable troll. Then again, it seemed like there were a lot of things he couldn't remember. "Oh, did that kismesis thing with that John guy work out?" He was damn proud of himself for remembering that.

"Of fucking course it didn't work out," Karkat shouted, face red with anger, "humans don't understand how to _hate_ properly in a relationship, and even if they could then John can't even do it properly anyway!" Maybe he could talk to John's sister, she seemed to know a little bit about proper hating...

"Aww, sorry bro..." He threw an arm around Karkat and brought him into a side hug, giving him a gentle noogie. "You'll find someone. Just believe in the power of the motherfuckin miracles like I keep telling you, brother."

"Shut the fuck up, fuckass." Karkat steamed underneath Gamzee cuddling and hugging. He didn't care if he got into a relationship. He was more worried about Gamzee. "So what the fuck are you going to do about Tavros."

Gamzee blinked a few times before he grinned, showing off his sharp teeth, "I want him to be my matesprite."

"Doesn't he like girls," Karkat growled, his voice getting dangerously loud again, but not quite yelling. Not yet. "He likes those stupid chest pads on girls, you really think he's going to go for you?"

Gamzee thought about it before taking another swig of faygo. "Well...I asked him to make out with me a little, and he didn't say no, so I think it's okay."

"Don't do it, fucknuts," Karkat warned, frowning deeply, “he's not going to go for you. You two have been almost moirails for who knows how the fuck long and you never made it official and the only reason is because you wanna be flushed with him."

"Uhh...yeah...I want a redrom..." Gamzee said as if Karkat had missed his point. "Besides, you're my moirail! I only need you to fill that quadrant." He quirked a lopsided smile.

"Ugh, don't remind me..." There were times when it felt like him and Gamzee weren't even moirails half the time... But of course, he did realize that he just had to keep stuffing his face full of pies to keep Gamzee safe, and that was that. "Still, don't do it. You two are better off as friends. He's too fragile for you."

“Yeah, he's real motherfuckin fidgety too..." Gamzee thought aloud, "But I can't leave him alone with that motherfucker..." He frowned, growing irritated by thoughts of Dave. "I should go back..."

"No way, you aren't leaving, I know you're just going to fucking ask him to be flushed with you and that's not gonna work, he likes _girls_!" There was little difference between trolls as female and males, females had larger bonebulges and chest pads, but that was about it. Aside from the brutality of their fights and their ability to withstand incredible amounts of physical violence.

Gamzee didn't pay Karkat any heed. He stood up and grabbed his faygo. "Well, I'll see you later, brother. Keep cool." He stepped down off the couch and headed towards the door.

Karkat shouted after Gamzee, but he knew there was no changing Gamzee's mind. He supposed he'd figure it out soon enough...

Back at the house, Tavros was working on some homework in his book, swinging his feet from where he sat at the kitchen table... He wondered if Gamzee or Dave would be home soon. He didn't care which one, he just wanted one of them to get home.

"Yo, anyone home?" Dave called as he dropped his school bag on the couch. He was hungry as hell after having been cooped up in the library all day with John.

"Hi, Dave!" Tavros called from the kitchen, looking up from his textbook. "I'm, uh, glad you're home... I've kind of been all alone for a while."

"Oh? Sorry bout that. We have our summer paper due tomorrow, and neither one of us bothered starting it until this morning." He sat down at the table, "Where'd your completely useless friend run off to? Not that I care."

"I'm not sure... Um, I think Gamzee went out somewhere, maybe to the place he was going to go before we ran into each other yesterday," Tavros replied with a sigh. He wondered when Gamzee would be back... He always worried.

"I hope he stays there." Dave huffed, grabbing an apple and taking a bite out of it. "Why are you so nice to obnoxious fucktards like that?"

"He's not obnoxious... Um... He's been my friend for so long," Tavros mumbled, shrugging and shaking his head. "Gamzee's not bad."

"I have yet to be proven otherwise."

There was an angry sounding voice coming from outside before the door opened and slammed. Gamzee had returned and it seemed like he'd brought a friend. "You know, you didn't have to follow me." Gamzee said as he gobbled up the last bit of his sopor pie.

"I will fucking follow you wherever the fuck you go if you're going to do shit like this, you moronic shitstain!" Karkat shouted, making Tavros flinch. Oh, he remembered that voice.

Dave sighed, getting up from the table to see what the whole damn commotion was about. He appeared in the doorway to the kitchen, leaning up against it and staring at them through the sunglasses he refused to remove. "What's with all this noise?"

"Hey back off fucknuts I'm trying to talk sense into this assfuck I call a moirail," Karkat shouted at the human before he turned back to Gamzee, still dogging him. "If you fucking do it you can't bother me with relationship shit!"

"Don't worry, bro, there'll be nothing to bother you about."

 

"Look, take your obnoxious asses elsewhere, you're in someone else's house. Neither one of you are welcome here, if anyone should back off it's you assholes." Dave argued.

Tavros came in between them and awkwardly waved to Karkat, "hey, Karkat... Um, Gamzee, maybe you should come inside. We need to get started on finding you a job, right?" He reached out to take the clown troll's hand and tug him inside so that Dave would stop being so irritated.

"Oh, this is Karkat? The way you described him, I thought he'd at least be somewhat tolerable." Dave turned away, having completely lost interest in the new guy. He wasn’t normally such an ass, but he was tired and irritated after finishing a very frustrating assignment.

"I'm gonna get a job, bro, just not today." He walked over, ignoring Karkat and Dave, "Just not today. It's already dark out."

Tavros left Karkat and Dave to argue as they no doubt would, instead pulling Gamzee into the kitchen with a sigh. "So you went to visit Karkat?" he said, trying to get a conversation starter.

"I was supposed to visit him yesterday, but I went with you instead." He looked over at the door where he could hear Dave's smooth, biting sarcasm and Karkat's angered shouting. "He was pretty pissed right off at me."

"Yeah, it sounds like it... He doesn't seem to like a lot of things, does he?" It reminded Tavros of that human ‘my favorite things' song, only backwards and things that were bad instead.

Gamzee knew that Karkat wasn't as angry as he often came across as being, not to say he didn't have a temper, but the guy really struggled with expressing himself. He shrugged, "He likes relationships."

"Oh, um...alright. What do you want to do while they...uh...duke it out." Tavros looked over and flushed brown as he saw that Karkat and Dave were now fiercely, and _angrily,_ making out. Or at least, Karkat was trying to and Dave didn't seem to understand. Those were caliginous feelings if he ever saw them... "...Oh."

 

Gamzee didn't know how he felt about seeing Dave and Karkat together. He felt a little protective of his moirail, but he also wanted him to find the romance he seeked, even if it appeared to be a one-sided black one. He looked down at Tavros and jerked a thumb over at Dave and Karkat. "Hey, we should make out too."

Tavros flushed and covered his face. "G-Gamzee..." He looked over at the others again, where Karkat was practically being shoved away into a wall. "Well...um...maybe a little..."

Gamzee's face split into a wide grin as he stalked towards Tavros. He put his hands beneath his arms and lifted him up onto the counter, leaning in to take Tavros' lips with his own, standing between the smaller troll's legs.

Tavros yelped as he was lifted up and blushed, but awkwardly kissed back. He swung his legs idly and placed one hand on Gamzee's chest. He didn't push, just let it rest there. It did feel rather nice to kiss the other... If not odd, since they were friends...

In the background the only thing one could hear was, "WHAT THE MOTHERGRUBBING BULLSHIT!?"

Gamzee leaned in more, tongue sliding out between his fangs and tickling across Tavros' lips. "You taste motherfuckin delicious..."

Dave walked up behind Karkat and grabbed him in a sleeper hold, dragging him off without another sound. "Shut up. Leave them alone."

Tavros wasn't listening to the other two people in the room, just trying to understand what he was feeling. His kisses back were a little less aggressive than Gamzee's, but they were there.

Gamzee cupped the back of Tavros' head, pulled him more firmly against him as he stepped as close as he could get, bodies flush against each other. His other hand went up to stroke one of the long horns before bringing it back down to the pale gray cheek.

Tavros gasped softly as his horns were touched, feeling rather awkward. They weren't a huge erogenous zone, but they could get a little sensitive more towards the scalp. Towards the ends they were completely desensitized, but they were so sensitive near his head... "Ah..."

Gamzee pulled away, licking his lips as he stared straight into Tavros' dilated eyes. "That was like...a motherfucking miracle, brother. You taste so good..." He bit the smaller troll's lips, hoping he could get a taste of that rusty blood. He pulled away and went up to slowly lick at the base of Tavros' horn.

Tavros nearly squealed. He covered his mouth and moaned, his bottom lip bleeding form Gamzee's sharp teeth. "Oh, g-gog..."

Gamzee pulled away from his horns and quickly lapped up the beads of blood that were forming. When Tavros was all cleaned, he pulled away. "You know what would be motherfuckin perfect?"

Tavros could vaguely hear Karkat's cursing in the background, but paid no mind to it. "Wh-what?" he murmured, blushing hard at the feeling of Gamzee tonguing his lip.

"If you became my motherfuckin matesprite." The atmosphere would've been considerably more romantic if there hadn't been Karkat's angered yelling and Dave attempts to shut him up going on in the background.

Tavros flushed and awkwardly covered his face as he looked away. "I...um..." He looked away. He liked girls...but...

Gamzee leaned in the direction Tavros had turned. "Don't you wanna be my matesprite?”

"I..." Tavros covered his face some more. "...Y-yes."

Gamzee threw his arms over Tavros's shoulders as he began to grin again, leaning in to rejoin their lips.

Gamzee's kisses still felt awkward but Tavros was a little more hesitant. He tried to get to his feet, but he was too short to kiss Gamzee like that. "Um, hey, let's go up to my room, okay?"

 

Gamzee picked Tavros up under the thighs, carrying him while the lowblood straddled his waist. He ignored Dave and Karkat as he walked by and towards the bedroom.

Tavros yelped but clung tight to the highblood. "They sound mad," Tavros mumbled. Or at least Karkat did... "Gamzee, are you serious about...um, us being...flushed?"

Gamzee kicked open the door to the bedroom. "Uh, yeah? That's why I wanted to be motherfuckin matesprites." He laid Tavros on the bed and started kissing him again.

"O-oh..." Tavros whined softly as Gamzee kissed him again and returned the affections. What were they going to do now? If Gamzee wanted to do...that, then he would have to say now. He wasn't ready.

Gamzee could feel Tavros tremble beneath him. He wasn't going to go any further just yet, but Tavros had been the one who suggested to go to the bedroom, so he'd been more than willing to oblige.

Tavros pulled away from the kiss for the moment and rested his chin on Gamzee's shoulder, grunting as his horn came in contact with the clown troll's head. "Oops..."

Gamzee grabbed his nose, wanting to make sure it wouldn't start bleeding. "Damn, brother, that was a hell of a motherfuckin knock to the face you gave me."

"I'm sorry!" Tavros exclaimed as he cupped Gamzee's face and examining him. It wasn't bleeding, but damn... "I'm really sorry... Th-they're just so big and unwieldy..."

Gamzee smiled, "But I like them. They suit you." He leaned in and kissed them near the base, giving a slow, tantalizing lick.

Tavros yelped and moaned low in the back of his throat. He whimpered and pulled back, shaking his head. "G-Gamzee, don't do things like that... Um, it really antagonizes me. Yeah."

Gamzee blinked, "Well, I don't want you gettin mad or anything like that." He got up off the boy and stood up from the bed.

"O-oh..." Wait, he hadn't meant to turn Gamzee away completely... "W-well, I didn't mean I was getting mad... I mean, um, I didn't... Y-you can do it, I just...uhh..."

Gamzee reached over and patted Tavros' head. "It's okay, brother. I'm hungry anyways."

Tavros jumped up to his feet and grabbed Gamzee's hand. "Then let me cook for you, okay?" He blushed a little but stayed confident, "I want to do something nice for you. What do you want to eat?"

He followed behind Tavros, gently squeezing his hand. "Food is food, brother. I'm not picky." But he would definitely have to make sure to have one of his pies later.

Dave was already in the kitchen, pulling things out of the fridge while Karkat sat angrily at the table.

As soon as Tavros and Gamzee came out, Karkat jumped to his feet and started cursing. Tavros groaned and covered his face. Oh god, he didn't want to have to deal with this... Why was Karkat always so angry?

Gamzee went over to his irritable moirail and tried to 'pap shoosh' him like Karkat had, thankfully only once, had to do for him.

While the two annoyingly useless trolls were out of the way, Dave summoned Tavros into the kitchen.

Karkat was soon calmed my Gamzee shooshing and his papping, and Tavros took Dave's motioning as a sign to follow him. He felt a little nervous... "Yeah, Dave, what is it?" he asked as he looked up at the other. He was almost as tall as Gamzee, but not quite.

Dave jerked a thumb towards the living room. "Do you even like him?"

"Of course I like him, Gamzee is my best friend!" Tavros replied, hands balling up into fists. "I-I mean...I was really surprised he wanted to be um, flushed with me..."

"That's what I'm talking about. Do you even feel 'flushed' or whatever with him? Or did you just say yes because he asked you to." Dave folded his arms, looking down at Tavros as he awaited his answer.

"Well..." Tavros looked down at his feet and fidgeted. "Um, I suppose... I have had a crush on him before, but I always thought we would be pale... And then Gamzee had Karkat to be his moirail..."

Dave sighed, he should've known he would never be able to get a direct answer out of this guy. "If you really cared about him you wouldn't be struggling so badly to defend your feelings."

"H-hunh? What does that mean?" Tavros asked, surprised to hear Dave talk like that. He did care for Gamzee, a lot! They were like the best of bros! And while it was shocking to hear that Gamzee was so flushed for him, asking him to become his matesprite... Tavros could give it a chance.

Dave sighed, his aggravation from close, extended contact with Karkat had left him infected with grumy. "Let me put it another way. If I pushed you up against that wall and started kissing you, how would you react."

"I would want you to stop!" Tavros replied with a firm nod, glad that he could be so confident in his answer. "Because you're my friend, Dave, and...um...I don't like you like that. ...W-wait, you don't actually want to do that, do you?"

"But it's okay if Gamzee does the exact same thing, right?" Dave quirked an eyebrow, "And no, I'm not propositioning you. You're like the socially awkward, balls-less, indecisive little brother I never had around to beat on growing up. I have no intention of making a move on you." His words were maybe a little harsh, but he meant well.

Tavros very much resented that. "I-it's not okay, I mean- he- he asked me first! He didn't just do it!" Sort of... "A-and it's different with Gamzee, we've been friends a lot longer..."

Dave frowned, "Alright, if you say so." Dave turned side stepped Tavros and walked back into the kitchen.

That frustrated Tavros to no end, but he let it go. He sighed and went to the fridge, trying to figure out what to get them to eat.

As Tavros got dinner ready, Gamzee and Dave sat across from each other at the table, both of them wearing similar frowns as sparks flew between the two of them.

"Quit staring at me you ICP wannabe."

"I thought I told you to stop spouting that blasphemy!" Gamzee stood up from the table. "You know Dave, I haven't had a pie in a while, and I don't get along with people too well when I'm sober."

"What are you, the hulk? I don't care about your social ineptitudes."

"Oh both of you nooksniffing shitstains shut the fuck up," Karkat grumbled as he sat beside Gamzee, glaring hard at Dave. Of course it seemed to be a...er...different kind of glare.

Tavros finished up dinner with a sigh and set out all the plates. "Can we all please get along?"

"I'd rather not waste the energy trying to do something that exceeds being pointless." Dave grabbed his plate and headed back into his room and put his headphones on, setting his food next to his turntables before he got lost in his music.

Gamzee quirked a smile, this situation suited him just fine.

Tavros sighed and sat down at the table across from Gamzee. He managed an awkward smile and looked around. "Well, um, dig in..." With Dave gone maybe there wouldn't be any fighting. At least, not any fighting that included Gamzee.

Gamzee happily dug in. Two meals in one day? Incredible. Maybe he could even gain back that weight he'd lost. "Hey, Karkat..."

"Shut up, fuckass, I don't want to hear it," Karkat snapped a little louder than he'd meant to as he decided to shovel his face full of food. Better than nothing, he supposed. A lot better than dorm food he'd been forced to eat for so long. Tavros stayed quiet, looking away awkwardly.

"...did you go for Dave cause he's like John's human sort of moirail?" Gamzee rarely ever shut up before finishing his thought, especially with Karkat.

"NO!" Karkat shouted, flustered and angry, "he's some wanton coolkid who thinks he can just act so indifferent to me, well I'll fucking show him, I'm going to hate the _fuck_ out of him, and he is going to hate me back goddamn it!"

Tavros groaned. Sometimes Karkat was just too much.

"I hope to goddamned hell you mean the other definition of wanton." Dave snarked as he went to go put his plate in the sink.

Gamzee felt his irritation spike. The sopor had almost completely worn off. He dragged his nails across the table, leaving scratches behind.

Both Karkat and Tavros flinched as they saw Gamzee clawing at the table. "H-hey, Gamzee, um, do you need another pie?" Tavros asked as he finished up his dinner and urged Dave silently to leave the room. Karkat didn't say anything.

Gamzee slowly turned towards Tavros, his eyes with a frightening sharpness to them that was highly unusual. A smile slowly broke out on his face. "I THINK....that a pie...WOULD DO WONDERS...right about now..."

Karkat nearly fell out of his chair and immediately got back up to grab Gamzee's head and hold it to his chest, shooshing and papping him into submission while Tavros ran and got one of Gamzee's pies that he had hidden away. Tavros returned soon enough and handed off the sopor pie to Gamzee, hoping he would eat it without any problems.

Gamzee briefly wondered how the hell he had ever tolerated this slop, but after dipping in his finger and taking a small lick, the pie was soon devoured before he could blink. He sat back and was soon overcome by the bliss of a sopor high. "Sorry bout the table, brother."

Tavros and Karkat both breathed a sigh of relief as Gamzee relaxed, letting them relax too. "I'm getting the fuck out of here," Karkat muttered as he walked towards the door. Tavros waved goodbye, only to be told to fuck off.

"Yeah, I'm out." Dave turned and left, not wanting to deal with that crazy clown any longer than he had to. He went back into his room and sat down at his desk, getting to work on an overdue sweet bro and hella jeff update.

Tavros smiled to Gamzee and swung his legs nervously. He couldn't even touch the ground from the seats. Then again, the seats were pretty high up... And it wasn't his fault he was unnaturally small for a troll! That and it seemed he was living with a troll and a human who were both unnaturally tall...

"Hmm, I think I'm gonna go down to the beach." He stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets, turning to leave the house.

"Oh, um... Can I come?" Tavros asked as he got up to his feet and trailed after the clown.

"Of course, brother." Gamzee grabbed Tavros's hand and pulled him out of the house. The sun was starting to go down as they walked the half mile to the beach.

Tavros swung their hands idly as he looked down over the path. At least Gamzee didn't have to stoop down or anything to hold his hand, that would just be awkward. Though as it was, his head only came up to about Gamzee's chest... He wondered if Gamzee were girl how big his chest pads would be... He shook that thought away, flushing dark.

Gamzee noticed the color spring up into the troll's face. "You're all flushed. That's real motherfuckin cute."

"No reason," Tavros mumbled, swinging their hands a little more. Damn did he feel awkward now. He would feel bad if Gamzee knew he had been wondering what he would look like as a girl!

Gamzee blinked at the response. He couldn't remember asking why...maybe he'd just forgotten. "Ah, we're here." He kicked off his shoes and relished in the feeling of the sand between his toes.

Tavros smiled and went to sit down on one of the logs, sighing softly. It was rather nice to get out and enjoy the sea breeze... He looked over at Gamzee who was still enjoying the feel of standing in the sand and watched.

Gamzee jogged towards the water, going until he was ankle deep in the icy ocean water. "Think I should go for a swim?"

Tavros laughed and nodded. "You should do it," he called out, hopping onto his feet and running out to greet the other in the ocean.

Gamzee pulled his shirt off of his head, but he left his shorts on. He ran into the water until it became a struggle to do so and dove in under water. The cold shocked his body, but he still loved the feel of it.

Tavros pulled his pants and his shirt off, leaving him in nothing but his boxer shorts as he waded in after Gamzee. He wasn't a very good swimmer, so when he got out to Gamzee he was barely keeping his head afloat, and latched onto the other troll. Lowbloods weren't known for their swimming capabilities.

Gamzee was just fine in the water. He wasn't a sea dweller, but he was about as close to one as you could get. He struggled a little at first, but he was soon able to support himself and Tavros. Having been on the swim team in highschool and his first semester of college had helped, despite the fact that he got kicked off for drug abuse.

Tavros awkwardly clung to Gamzee with a slight flush. "Um, sorry... I guess you and your dad living by the beach all that time really came in handy, hunh?"

"Well, and my feet are almost on the sand." The tide had shifted them enough so Gamzee could stand on his tip-toes. Though he understood how that may seem precariously deep for Tavros.

"It's deep," Tavros responded in turn with a pout. "I can do it on my own," he said as he pushed away and tried to keep himself afloat...only to sink, like he had lead feet.

Gamzee grabbed Tavros by the horns, the only thing he could see in the dark water, and hoisted the boy back up. "You alright there brother?"

Tavros coughed and crossed his arms, very unamused. "Can we go back towards the shallow end?"

Gamzee quirked his lopsided smile before carrying Tavros to where he could stand, never letting go of his horns. "There you are." He placed Tavros back down once he was sure he could stand.

The smaller troll pouted, but waded so that he could keep his head above the water. "Gamzee, you shouldn't be tall."

Gamzee quirked an eyebrow, a little confused. He crouched down until the top of his head was at Tavro's shoulders, granted he was practically on his knees at this point. "Is that better?" His nose was barely above water at this point, and his body couldn't really be seen beneath the surface.

"Well, um, don't drown," Tavros said, feeling bad that Gamzee was actually taking him seriously. "I-it's okay, I mean, I'm short, I know I am... And you're...really tall."

"Well, I'm short now." Gamzee laughed a little, "Sorry brother," he stood up again, gaining at least 2 feet in height, "didn't mean to be tall."

"You shouldn't be sorry you're tall," Tavros said as he hopped up, trying to gain some height. He still only came down to Gamzee's chest.

Gamzee looked over Tavros at the setting sun, smiling broadly. He looked back down at his dear matesprite and leaned down to kiss him.

Tavros was still a little awkward with the kissing thing, but he kissed back a little harder and more confident this time.

To Gamzee, it was a pleasant surprise. He grabbed the back of Tavros' head and deepened their kiss, tongue trying to engage the other's.

Tavros looped his arms around Gamzee neck and was even able to lift himself off the ground in the water. He actually didn't mind the thought of having Gamzee as his matesprite now... The idea was weird at first, but... He could get used to this.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me and my comrade realize that certain characters are not behaving...well. but we acknowledge this.
> 
> also we've gotten their personalities down a lot better now. keep in mind we wrote this over a year ago ouo;;;


	3. Two Sides of a Story

Gamzee was sitting on the couch, long legs pulled up to his chest with his back to the high armrest. He had one hand carding through his unruly hair while he had the thumb of the other between his teeth, biting it, his tongue lapping up the beads of grape colored blood. He was sober, completely and totally sober. He'd run out of sopor the day before in the early afternoon. This was the longest he'd been sober in...years surely.  It could have easily been a decade. He could feel the voice clawing at the weak spots in his sanity, that itching in his brain wouldn't go away no matter how hard he scratched.

Tavros was getting worried about Gamzee. He was unaware of Gamzee's sober state, but he was starting to worry that his matesprite couldn't function outside... He knew Gamzee let the 'miracles' decide where to take him, but he really needed some real guidance to get a job... He came into the living room, pulling his apron out and coming to sit beside Gamzee. "Hey, Gamzee...?"

Gamzee didn't even notice that Tavros had sat down in front of him. He had started rocking as the thoughts that the sopor had always kept quelled started to bubble up again.

"Gamzee?" Tavros reached out to try and touch his matesprite's shoulder. He was a little worried... Was Gamzee sober? Tavros was put even more on edge as the thought entered his head.

Gamzee's hand shot out and grabbed Tavros' wrist in a terribly tight grip. He looked up at the man who had tried to touch him, a glare settled into his eyes, pupils constricted. His mouth was drawn into a tight frown, and even though he was staring straight into Tavros' eyes, it was like he couldn't even see him.

Tavros screamed on instinct and flailed, yanking his hand back. He felt bad and rather embarrassed about screaming, but it was scary. "G-Gamzee, do you need a pie?" he asked as he sat on his knees and tried to come closer to his Matesprite, putting a hand on his shoulder again.

Gamzee grabbed it again, digging his sharp nails into the skin. "Don't you motherfuckin touch me, YOU FILTHY LOWBLOOD."

Tavros screamed again and tried to yank his hand back, but Gamzee's grip holding tight. "G-Gamzee, stop! You're sober, y-you need a pie!"

Gamzee pulled Tavros in close, grinning maliciously. "If I had some of those motherfucking think pan rusting abominations, I WOULDN'T BE MOTHERFUCKING SOBER, WOULD I?"

Tavros screamed again and shoved away from the other, landing back on his ass as tears budded in the corners of his eyes. He looked up fearfully, frozen in place. Oh god, why couldn't he be brave and confident for once?

"Come on now, DON'T BE SO MOTHERFUCKING FRIGHTENED. I'm your matesprite, aren't I?" Gamzee grinned again in that creepy way he had. He dropped his feet to the floor and leaned forward, looking down at Tavros. "WHAT THE FUCK WAS IT that you wanted?"

Tavros' words caught in his throat as he looked the other in the eyes, unable to say anything. He had wanted to try and help Gamzee get a job again... But he wasn't sure if he could now. He decided to try again, "I-I, um, I wanted to, uh, h-h-help you..."

"Now isn't that just MOTHERFUCKING PERFECT. How were you planning ON HELPING THIS SOBER MOTHERFUCKER?"

Flinching, Tavros kept his gaze down into his lap as he trembled. Oh god, he just wanted Gamzee to go back to being sopored up, he was so scared... "I-I was thinking we could go job hunting," he whispered, squeezing his eyes shut. He had to be confident.

Gamzee slowly caressed Tavros' jawline, thumb stroking his jaw while his four fingers gently rested on his neck. "JOB HUNTING, you say?"

Tavros definitely didn't like the tone in Gamzee's voice... While Gamzee's voice normally tended to bounce all around the walls and ripple in a way that seemed inhuman (or untroll-like...he supposed), this just alternated between something horrifying and something too sickly sweet to be safe. "Y-yeah... S-so you can get a job, and D-Dave won't kick you out..."

Gamzee brought his thumb down next to Tavros' windpipe, beginning to grip his throat tightly, quickly and easily cutting off his air. He brought the other hand down so Tavros couldn't pull away. "And whoever said I wanted...A MOTHERFUCKING JOB?" He stood up, bringing Tavros with him. He stormed forward until the smaller boy was slammed up against the wall, a couple inches off the ground. "Now you listen to me, YOU MOTHERFUCKING LOWBLOOD. You absolutely do not EVER TELL ME WHAT TO MOTHERFUCKING DO. Understand?"

Tavros screamed, the noise gurgled and cut off by the hand around his throat. He kicked violently and claws at Gamzee's hand, trying to twist his head. Maybe he could knock Gamzee in the face with one of his horns... He didn't want to hurt his Matesprite, but he couldn't just let him hurt him like this! "Gamzee, stop!" he shouted, crying harder now as brown-tinted tears slid down his pale cheeks.

Gamzee leaned in and licked up one of the semi-clear, brown tears, enjoying the taste. "I hope that this has taught you a lesson...FOR THE MOTHERFUCKIN FUTURE." He dropped Tavros to the ground and walked away, hands in his pockets as he left the house, whistling a bit through his fangs.

Tavros sobbed and covered his face, attempting to stop the tears. He was glad Dave hadn't been there to walk in on that... He could talk his way out of a lot of things, but Gamzee choking the life out of him was not one of them. He picked himself up and ran up to his room to cry there, hiding under his blankets.

When Dave finally did arrive home, he was curious as to why it was so quiet. Usually there'd be obnoxious juggalo music coming from his room, and he would then proceed to duke it out with Gamzee who had hijacked his turntables, or something of that nature. Instead, it was almost dead silent. Tavros' door was closed, which was unusual. He went over and knocked on the wood.

Tavros was still crying from his earlier encounter, sniffling and hiccuping into his pillow. "Wh-what?" he called out, wiping his nose on his arm and wiping at the brown-tinted tears in his eyes. He wondered if it was Gamzee, if he had sopored up and decided to come back and apologize. "C-come in."

Dave pushed open the door, letting it open all the way before he stepped inside. "Your face is leaking...brown...stuff..." He wasn't quite sure what to call it, but Tavros' face was covered in brown snot and tears, there were even dark brown marks on his neck. "What the hell happened to you?"

"O-oh, Dave, its you..." Tavros sniffled and wiped at his eyes again. "S-sorry... Me and Gamzee had a...a fight." Best to just leave it at that... He didn't want Dave to worry over him or anything.

Dave quirked an eyebrow. "I thought I was the only person he fought with. Why would you two fight, he usually follows you like a horse after a carrot.

"N-no, it wasn't like that," Tavros mumbled as he should his head and hugged a pillow to his chest. He buried his face into it to hide the tears. "H-he's sober, I should have left him alone as soon as I realized..."

"So you’re saying it’s your own fault?" Dave sat down on the desk chair, leaning back in it. "Is his being Sober really that big of a deal?"

"He gets...different," Tavros mumbled, clearing his throat and burying his face into the pillow with a sigh. "I just wish he could have somewhere to make his pies... I feel like him being sober could have been avoided."

"We're not setting up a drug cartel on our back porch. He can go out and get his drugs at sketchy street corners in the dead of night like normal people." Dave frowned a bit at the notion.

"B-but, Dave, he needs it!" Tavros exclaimed as he sat up and looked to the other with pleading eyes. "H-he just needs a recuperacoon and an oven!"

"I don't care. I'm not giving that lazy free-loader anything. If he wants his koopa-whatsit then he has to damn well earn it." Dave got up. "If you guys fought just over some stupid drugs, then I'm out of here. I...." Dave's twisted up in a scowl as he tried to express an emotion he wasn't used to, "Shit, dammit, I care about you like a bro, and if this thing between you two gets abusive, he's outta here."

"I-I'm sure he's out getting more sopor right now!" Tavros promised, nodding frantically. "And once he's sopored up I can take him job hunting and he won't have to be sober, and he won't be freeloading anymore! I promise!" He didn't want Gamzee to be tossed out on the street, or sober. Or both.

Dave gave Tavros a sort of pitying look. "Do whatever you want, but it's been 2 weeks and he still hasn't found a job."

"I'm going to get him one, I swear," Tavros promised, "I just...have to wait until he gets back." He didn't want to go searching for Gamzee right then. Not only was it not a good idea, but he probably wouldn't be able to find him anyway.

“Alright, well, it's your life. I'm headed out, probably won't be back till late. I'll see you." Dave left the room, closing the door behind him. Tavros was such a damned pushover...he'd have to keep an eye on those two.

"Alright, Dave...thanks." Tavros managed to crack a smile and flopped back down onto the bed. He really hoped Gamzee got home soon...

It was about four whole days before a peep was heard out of Gamzee again. He'd stopped by Karkat's place on his way back from home. He didn't remember how he'd gotten there or why he was there in the first place. When he'd looked down at himself, he'd been covered in sopor. His last memory was of dinner...what he could only assume to have been the night before. Now, he was desperately hungry, having eaten nothing but a pie in the last 4 days, and they weren't exactly the most sustaining things to eat.

Karkat had officially freaked out when he saw Gamzee on his doorstep. "What the FUCK do you think you're doing, looking like that!? It looks like you took a mothergrubbing nap in your recooperacoon and didn't shower!"

Gamzee looked down at his shirt. Ah, yup, there was still some sopor left. He ran his hand across it and licked it off his palm, much to his moirails disgust. "Can I get down oon my wicked munch? ...I'm real motherfuckin hungry..."

"Yeah, get the fuck in here..." Karkat muttered as he grabbed Gamzee, avoiding the sopor, and sat him down to get him some food. "Where the hell have you been, fuckwad? Tavros hasn't shut up on my phone!"

Gamzee gladly ate the food, not answering Karkat right away as he stuffed his face. When the plate was mostly empty, he was finally able to speak again. "It's like I just closed my eyes and there I was, like don't remember movin, but brother it was like some other fucker was movin my legs for me. Like one of those miracle machines Equius is always makin that just break and stop movin for no reason. Like I just got picked up and moved till my motherfuckin power went out."

"Then where the fuck did you end up going?" Karkat demanded, crossing his arms. Despite looking livid, his brows tilted inward, betraying how worried he was and the bags under his eyes telling just how little he'd slept because of Gamzee's disappearance.

"I woke up on that dock where I always waited for my dad to come home, cause he never comes home...and I'd eaten a couple pies I think, I don't know brother, it was like a bad dream, but you forget all about it. I don't wanna go and be worryin all of you about a fucker like me." Gamzee scratched the back of his head a little sheepishly. He'd caused his moirail trouble once again.

"Yeah well your stupid matesprite won't stop calling me about where the hell you could be, so you'd better tell him! And get yourself a fucking job, or else that asshole human Dave is going to kick your ass out on the street like the nooksniffing nutbeast you are."

Gamzee frowned, hunching his shoulders and looking up at Karkat like a wounded puppy. "I'm real sorry Karkat. Can you help me find a job? I don't want to be goin back to Tavros without a motherfuckin job or nothing."

"Damn fucking right you won't!" Karkat grabbed Gamzee by the horn and yanked him to his feet towards the door. "We're going to get you a job so you can keep making your stupid fucking pies so that you don't do shit you regret."

Gamzee suppressed a whimper at the harsh touch to one of his erogenous zones. Now was the time for such things. "Do you think I did something bad? Fuck, brother, I don't remember."

"I'm sure you would have shown up on the news," Karkat muttered as he yanked Gamzee down the stairs and out onto the street. "Let's just grab some fliers..."

Gamzee was walking bent at the waist, head twisted to the side as Karkat pulled him by the horn. He laughed at the idea of him appearing on the news. "Fuck, guess I was good then, huh brother?"

"You must've been..." Karkat let the taller troll go and went up to a newspaper stand and bought the latest edition. He walked back and stuffed the classifieds in Gamzee's face. "Pick one, fucknuts."

Gamzee scanned the paper, head slowly tilting sideways as he stared at the words. They were crawling about like a bunch of teeny-tiny grubs on wriggling day, and he couldn't focus on one thing or another. He pointed at random and figured whatever it was would be good enough.

Karkat looked and arched an eyebrow. "Working at the fucking grocer? Okay, whatever... Let's go get you to a phone to apply for the interview..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please don't ever pity gamzee in this story just please don't


	4. My Lover and Abuser

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> accidentally posted the wrong chapter to the wrong story. updated it to the correct version.

Gamzee threw open the door to Tavros and Dave's house like he owned the place, bag to the brim with practically nothing but containers of sopor slung over his shoulder and Karkat standing behind him, having insisted on making sure he actually got home. "Hey Tavros! Guess, what this motherfucker did. Went out and got gave my righteous self over to the big boss bitch. So I can start helpin out like I motherfuckin promised.

Tavros was in the kitchen when Karkat and Gamzee burst through. "Really?" he said, eyes going wide. "That's great!" he exclaimed with a smile widening across his features. He was still a little sore over what had happened when Gamzee had been sober, but seeing him so sopored up and happy... It really helped the smaller troll.

Gamzee hurried over and picked Tavros up off the ground, spinning him a few times and getting extra dizzy from the sopor. "Didn't mean to disappear like that, brother. Don’t even remember how I got through the motherfuckin door." He put Tavros down and leaned in for a kiss.

Tavros giggled and kissed back, ignoring the scowl Karkat was making. "I'm glad you're back..." He noticed the bag full of sopor slime. "And that you brought your sopor," he noted with a firm nod.

"Oh. It came back." Dave commented uninterestedly from wherever he'd appeared from. "And apparently it got a job."

"Dave, be nice," Tavros said from where he was hugging his Matesprite. He smiled and leaned up to kiss Gamzee's nose again, giggling. "I'm really glad you got a job, Gamzee!"

Gamzee smiled, picking Tavros up again and carrying him away so they could be by themselves.

Dave's gaze slowly travelled to the moirail that still hadn't left. "And why are you here?"

Karkat glared at the human and crossed his arms. "I came here because that fuckwad is a moron and went and got himself sober so now I had to go and get him a job so he wouldn't get tossed out on the streets."

Dave folded his arms and leaned against the doorframe. "Well, thanks for getting him off his ass so I wouldn't have to kill him."

"Of fucking course you can't kill that nookstain. He's done more fucking damage than you could hope to do to anyone in your entire life," Karkat snapped with a growl. "Whatever, I'm leaving. ...I hate you."

"Wait, is that your weird ass kisum...kisessmesis thing where your way of showing you love someone is by hating them? No thanks dude, I, uh, don't hate you." The whole idea sort of squicked him out, really.

"Why don't you hate me!?" Karkat demanded, seeming ultimately hurt by this statement.

"Why should I hate you? You're just annoying as fuck like a lot of people I know." Dave furrowed his brow, not quite understanding.

"You should hate me because I hate you more than anything else, you piss me off and aggravate me and make me want to scream," Karkat exclaimed as he clenched his fists. Of course, he was already sort of screaming...

Tavros winced as he heard Karkat's yelling. "I feel kind of bad for him."

"It seems like the only reason I piss you off is because I don't hate you. I rarely ever see you. If I were to hate someone it'd be that useless mwah...rail or whatever the fuck Gamzee is to you." Dave's voice didn't falter once as he spoke.

Gamzee pulled away from where he was suckling at Tavros' neck. "Is something wrong with Karkat?"

"What!? How the fuck can you hate him more than me!? He doesn't even know how to properly hate when he's sopored up! And you don't want him hating you sober!" Karkat shouted as he fumed over the fact that Gamzee could be stealing his potential kismesis. He wanted his fucking candlelight hate date.

"He sounds like he's confessing to Dave..." Tavros mumbled with a soft flush to his cheeks.

"I don't hate someone cause I want to. I'm fucking human, bro, we don't do that quadrant shit. If you hate someone, you're enemies, not in some sort of alien romance." Just how big was the crab that had crawled up this kid's ass?

Gamzee frowned. He didn't like the idea of Karkat being Dave's kismesis, especially when he was on his way to being his kismesis already. Why couldn't his friend ever try looking for a redrom...

"Yeah well hUMAN ROMANCE IS FUCKING STUPID!" And with that, Karkat stomped out of the house.

"Does Karkat like humans more than trolls?" Tavros asked as he looked up at his matesprite. It felt like Karkat was always lusting after humans. First the John human, and now Dave...

Dave flinched his head back a little when the door slammed, but didn't react otherwise. He went back into his room, scratching his pale blonde hair out of confusion.

"I guess he just likes, or hates, whoever he's gonna fuckin hate." Gamzee flopped down on the bed next to Tavros, hands behind his head. He chuckled, “Maybe’s he’s got a fetish for pink, hornless lil bitchass motherfuckers.”

Tavros sighed and rolled over onto his stomach. He kicked his legs into the air and rested his head in his hands. "Have you ever had a kismesis?" Gamzee really didn't seem like the type...

Gamzee fiddled with a lock of hair that made its way into his field of vision. "I think the fuckin shades master is as close as I'll ever get. No reason to hate people when it's better if we all just get along, brother."

"I don't really want you two to hate one another," Tavros sighed as he rested his chin on Gamzee's chest. "If you guys try to be caliginous I'm going to auspitize you!"

Gamzee began to stroke the shaggy mohawk. "If you don't want a brother to hate, then this motherfucker won't hate."

"Good, I don't want to have to auspitize you," Tavros laughed as he leaned up and kissed Gamzee on the nose. "Your makeup is smeared still..." It was completely smeared in one direction, like Gamzee had tried to wipe it off but had only tried once.

"Really?" That was certainly unusual, it was rarely ever smeared. He chuckled a bit, "Well, shit, I musta looked real fucking funny with my paint all smeared all over where it ain't supposed to."

"Here, let me wipe it off so you can fix it," Tavros laughed as he reached over for a tissue and started to wipe at Gamzee's makeup. When he was completely cleaned up he smiled and leaned in to kiss the juggalo troll. Gamzee looked nice without all the makeup on...

"Feels weird, bein all without the paint, like being outside without any motherfuckin clothes." Gamzee turned his face away, almost embarrassed.

Tavros laughed at Gamzee's shyness. "I think you look nice, Gamzee," he said with a firm nod and rolled off of the other. He ran to Gamzee's bag and pulled out his makeup kit to give to him. "Here you go, so you can put it back on."

"Thanks, brother." He felt like he'd betrayed his religion a tad, removing the traditional make up. He squirted some onto his hand and painted his face with practiced ease, not even needing a mirror.

"You look a lot better," Tavros assured him as he crawled onto the bed and curled up beside Gamzee once more. "I think you look nice without your makeup..." He knew he couldn't get Gamzee to stop, but maybe take it off every now and then...?

"Gotta keep to my religion, brother. Ain’t gonna commit no heresey cause a motherfucker up n says my tradition can’t make em spring one." Gamzee glared for a moment before put an arm around Tavros' shoulders. He wanted to do everything to make his matesprite happy, but being a juggalo was everything he was about. He wasn’t about to change that.

"I know, I know," Tavros said, smiling as he laid his head on Gamzee's chest. He yawned and closed his eyes, curling his toes. It was a little awkward with his horns, but...oh well.

Gamzee's hand travelled over Tavros' back, hand slowly getting lower and more inappropriate with each pass. He kissed the giant horns affectionately.

Tavros gasped and fought down a blush, looking up at Gamzee with a huff. "What are you doing?" he asked, brown tinting his cheeks.

"Kissing you," he ran his tongue over the horn slowly, "touching you," his hand grabbed Tavros' ass, massaging it with his long, thin fingers.

The smaller troll grunted in surprise, face going completely flushed. "G-Gamzee, I dunno..." It hadn't been that long since they'd been together, and he was embarrassed every since that time in bed... Wait, didn't they need a bucket, anyway?

Gamzee flipped them over, laying on top of Tavros. He wouldn't push Tavros past his comfort zone, but he really wanted him, had for a long time. If Tavros didn't say no soon, he didn't know whether he'd be able to stop.

Tavros gulped as he looked up, unsure of how to precede. He did want Gamzee, he had his own frustrations, but... He wasn't sure. But he didn't say anything, just swallowed heavily and gave Gamzee a nod.

Gamzee's face split into a huge grin, border-lining predatory. He nuzzled against his neck, biting and kissing it as he got comfortable between Tavros' legs.

Tavros squirmed and reached down to grip Gamze's horns, thumbs stroking the dark orange keratin. "Mnn..." If he spoke no doubt he would have been a stuttering mess.

Gamzee felt a shiver work its way down his spine. "Aww..fuuuuuck~" He mumbled as his member twitched and writhed, desperate for attention.

Tavros could smell the arousal thick in the room. Damn did he feel...frustrated. The sexual tension was killing him, but he wasn't sure if he was really ready to go _all_ the way

Gamzee bit and sucked, leaving behind bite marks and hickeys behind as he started to remove Tavros' shirt. His free hand went to the bulge he'd been dreaming about since he'd touched his matesprit in his sleep. He wanted another taste of those delicious fluids.

Tavros squirmed and had to wiggle awkwardly out of his shirt. It was always awkward with the giant horns, and all... But he managed it, and tossed the shirt away, hands clasping over his stomach. "Gamzee, uhh..." He didn't know what to say, exactly... He just wanted to say his Matesprites name.

Gamzee pressed their lips together, swallowing up anything Tavros might've tried to say. He grabbed the bottom of his shirt and pulled it up over his head.

Tavros pressed his hands to Gamzee's thin chest, feeling just how lanky and thin he was. It almost worried the smaller troll, but he knew Gamzee was just...tall.

Gamzee looked down at Tavros' chest. His skin was smooth and soft, and maybe a touch squishy, while he was bony and lanky. He loved Tavros' body, and he leaned in to bite and suckle it, leaving bite marks all down his chest, some of them beading with little drops of brown blood wherever his fangs had sunk in.

Tavros squirmed and whined whenever he was bit, face flushing in annoyance as his dirty blood was left to roll down his pale grey skin. He wasn't ashamed of his blood or anything, but... He also wasn't exactly about to go flaunt it around. He gripped Gamzee's horns again and rubbed with the pads of his fingers, watching out Gamzee twitched and roiled with arousal.

"Hoonnnk..." Gamzee growled as Tavros stroked his horns. His back arched and his hips lifted up like a cat. He brought a hand down and unzipped Tavros' pants, hand slipping inside and stroking the writhing member.

Tavros squealed in surprise and smacked both hands over his face. He wasn't exactly sure how he felt about Gamzee touching his more sensitive and private areas... He moaned as Gamzee’s slender hand stroked the tentacle-like bulge, making him shiver. Damn, did it feel good, though...

"Hey, don't hide your face, brother, it's fuckin adorable." Gamzee unzipped his pants and pushed them down still they were sitting just past his ass, his excited bulge twisting about, begging for attention.

"Ahh..." Tavros took a peek down below and gulped. Gamzee sure was big... Bigger than most male trolls. Tavros wasn't bad himself, he could consider himself rather average, maybe even above so, but Gamzee was just... _big_.

Gamzee leaned in and tugged Tavros' pants down until his bulge came into view. He licked his painted lips, wanting so badly to taste it. He got down between Tavros' legs, stroking the base as one finger slipped inside the hot, wet nook.

Tavros yelped rather loudly in surprise, his seedflap quivering and his bulge twitching as he adjusted to the new sensation. "Ahh, G-Gamzee," he whispered breathlessly as the tentacle-like bulge pulsed and twisted, needing some kind of touch.

Gamzee ran his tongue over the twitching bulge; he'd have to be mindful of his teeth. He ran his pointed tongue along the length up to the tip, taking the tip into his mouth. Tavros bulge invaded his mouth, writhing about and slithering down his throat.

Tavros moaned, sliding his hands through Gamzee's wavy and messy hair, eyes rolling back in his head. It was an entirely new feeling, something he'd never experienced in his life. His bonebulge continued to twist and wiggle in the other troll's mouth, brushing up against teeth harmlessly and his tongue, oh god, his tongue... Tavros gripped Gamzee's horns for dear life.

"Mmmm!" Gamzee shuddered when his horns were grabbed so roughly, humming with pleasure. He couldn't help but swallow, increasing the pressure around the needy mumber. His face was buried in Tavros' groin as his hands continued to work the moist nook, ignoring his own pleading member.

"Gamzee, ahhh!" Tavros cried out, arching his back as both parts of him were stimulated simultaneously. "Oh g-god, oh god, G-Gamzee, we need a bucket," he stammered out breathlessly, getting worried now. He didn't want to make a huge mess.

Gamzee ignored him, continuing to pleasure the smaller troll. He didn't want all that genetic material to go to waste. He wanted all of that delicious fluid to himself.

Tavros came with a cry of pleasure, arching his back and spraying half a bucket's worth of genetic material into Gamzee's mouth, some even leaking from his nook, though not nearly as much as what came from his bulge. He groaned as he went limp, tongue hanging out in his pleasure and climax. Oh, god...

Gamzee swallowed mouthful after mouthful of Tavros' genetic material, struggling to keep up with it, and almost afraid it'd start to leak out his nose. He could feel himself getting full, but he couldn't just stop, not with Tavros' pulsing member halfway down his throat.

The genetic material came to a slow stop, dripping from the slit every now and then, but more or less done. Tavros moaned and tried to relax, catching his breath. "G-Gamzee, you swallowed all of it, shit!" he exclaimed, covering his mouth. Was Gamzee serious!?

Gamzee pulled away, placing his hands on his slightly bulging stomach. "Uhhn...you taste really fuckin good brother..." His own member was still desperately seeking attention, it was flushed dark purple and leaking profusely, his nook twitching with want. He leaned down and began to stroke himself, finger running over his slit. "Think you can help a brother out?"

Tavros nodded as he looked to Gamzee's obscenely large (for a male anyway) bulge. "What do you want me to do?" he asked as he sat up and reached out to touch the thin tip that beaded an indigo fluid. He swirled the tip of his finger around it, curiously touching.

"Just make me motherfuckin cum." Gamzee hissed at the teasing touch to the tip, eyes following Tavros' hand as it slowly working his twitching bonebulge. "I need more than that, brother..."

Nodding, Tavros gripped the sensitive appendage fully and got on his knees, leaning down to breathe over the bulge before putting the tip in his mouth. It was salty and sweaty, but he didn't mind... Gamzee's pre tasted like faygo, almost. But other than that, it didn't really have a taste.

Gamzee slowly thrust his hips into Tavros' hand. His member and nook were leaking profusely, quivering at the attention. "Nnn...yes." He took one hand of his taught, rounded stomach and began to stroke the long, thick horns.

Tavros yelped as his horns were stroked, moaning and taking more and more into his mouth. Gamzee was big, but he could take quite a lot down his throat. Gamzee's member was slick enough and flexible enough that it hardly opposed movement.

Gamzee gripped Tavros' horn as member writhed around the hot, moist cavern. He brought one of his long, thin hands down to massage his leaking nook. "Nnn...feels good, brother..." His face was flushing with his dark blood as he grew close to orgasm.

Tavros pressed his free hand beneath Gamzee's writhing bulge and pressed a couple fingers to his quivering and moist nook. He took in more of Gamzee's bulge and stroked his seedflap, wanting to make him feel just as good as he had felt beforehand.

Gamzee brought his other hand up to Tavros' other horn, gripping them and twisting like he was revving a motorcycle. His head went back as his body shivered with pleasure. "Fuck...oh fuck, Tav...I think I'm gonna fuckin come..."

Gamzee's touch on his horns wasn't helping to stop from staying aroused, but Tavros kept deepthroating the other and stroking his seedflap. He wondered what Gamzee's genetic material tasted like...

"Tavros, I gotta pull out before i fuckin explode..." He wasn't sure Tavros could handle swallowing all of his genetic fluid. He was in a great deal of discomfort from swallowing all of Tavros, but his own load was even larger.

Tavros nodded and pulled back, stroking Gamzee's bulge and nook simultaneously. "Sh-should I try and find a bucket?" he asked, feeling awkward and nervous. He knew he had one somewhere in his room...

"N-No time..." Gamzee tensed up before releasing his load all over Tavros, dousing him with his indigo fluids, his nook leaking over the fingers that filled him. "Uhn...that was like a motherfuckin miracle, brother..." he slouched until he was lying back on the bed, "...felt so fucking good..."

Tavros closed his eyes and tilted his head up slightly as genetic material was sprayed all over his face. He couldn't help but laugh and wipe at his face. He probably looked pretty ridiculous... He smiled sheepishly at the other as he was wiping the indigo fluid away from his eyes. "Y-yeah, it really was..."

Gamzee reached up and wiped some of his fluid off Tavros' cheek. "Sorry bout that, brother." He brought his hand back down to his stomach. "I look like I've had one of those human impregnations."

Tavros giggled and poked Gamzee's stomach. "You know, I heard in the really old times before we got mother grubs and uses buckets that's how we did it." Of course, that was before those named advancements. He doubted their bodies could even achieve something like a human-like pregnancy now.

"I bet we'd have fuckin amazing grubs." Gamzee smiled, stroking his stomach as if he really was pregnant. Even if they couldn't get pregnant, he sure as hell didn't mind trying.

Tavros blushed and looked away with a sheepish smile. "Yeah... But I think that's something for, um, a while later." He wasn't exactly ready to take on grubs. And besides, it was only recently becoming accepted for grown trolls to even be around a younger troll without killing them.

“Well, yeah, not right now.” Gamzee yawned broadly. He got up, crawling to go get under the covers. He needed a pie, but his stomach was far too filled with Tavros’ genetic material to be able to handle one. He groaned a bit, feeling his high wearing off.

Unaware of Gamzee's slowly fading high, Tavros cuddled up under the highblood's arm and yawned. "We should take a nap, then we can get up and play a game or something! I don't have classes tomorrow, so it'll be fun to just lay around the house with you, unless you have work."

Gamzee blinked, "Oh, right, I have a job now..." He yawned again, "I think I start tomorrow....or was it the day after..." He tilted his head, honestly unable to remember. "Fuck, I better ask Karkat..."

"Well, ask later, okay, I want to cuddle," Tavros demanded, smiling confidently as he snuggled up to Gamzee and closed his eyes.

Gamzee smiled down at his matesprite. He snuggled him in close, humming softly as he fell asleep. As he slept, the remaining sopor wore off entirely, meaning that in the morning, he'd be completely sober.

Tavros woke up early the next morning to get breakfast ready and got Gamzee's pie for him, thinking he'd be doing something sweet. He went up to their room and knocked, peeking inside. "Gamzee?"

Only the faintest of morning light was trickling in, leaving the room still mostly dark. It was a bit hard to see, but Gamzee was obviously not in the bed, though Tavros hadn't heard him emerge from the bedroom either.

The door slammed shut, Gamzee's hand on it, the other hidden behind his back. "That isn't breakfast. That is your way OF TRYING TO FUCKING CONTROL ME...by reducing my thinkpan...TO A FUCKING PILE OF MUSH...But you like me better that way...don’t you?"

Tavros screamed and whipped around, falling back on his eyes, trembling beneath the other. "G-Gamzee..." Oh god, he was sober again... "N-no, I just thought you'd like a pie with breakfast!"

" YOU THOUGHT I'D LIKE A MOTHERFUCKING PIE?" He stalked closer, leaning down over the felled boy. "I bet you thought you were being really fuckin sweet." He brought out one of his juggling clubs from behind his back and lifted Tavros' chin with it. "Bet you think you’re cute...YOU’RE MOTHERFUCKIN DISGUSTING, A PUS STAIN OF IGNORANCE. And I’ll crush you like a grub under my boot."

Tavros held in his scream this time, looking up with watery eyes, his opaque brown tears clouding his vision. He gulped as he glanced down at the club, and decided he needed to get the fuck out of there. He jumped to his feet and shoved Gamzee aside, running for the door.

Gamzee was barely thrown off balance by the shove from the tiny troll. He threw the club and it hit Tavros in the back of the head, hard enough to knock him to the ground, but not nearly hard enough to knock him out. "WHERE THE FUCK...did you think you were going?"

Tavros screamed as he was knocked to the ground and tried to get up again, holding the back of his head. He whimpered and sniffled, managing to yank the door open, but not yet on his feet.

Gamzee picked up the club and hit the hand Tavros had on the knob, smiling when he heard the sound of bones cracking. "I don't MOTHERFUCKING think so..." He slammed the door shut, kicking Tavros away from it. Now he stood between the terrified troll and the only way out of the room. "Hey lowblood...LETS PLAY A FUCKING GAME."

Tavros screamed as his hand was struck, sobbing as he looked up at his matesprit. No, this wasn't his matesprit, his matesprit was kind and funny and sweet. This was someone else entirely. He cradled his hand to his chest and scrambled back and away, hiccuping between his tears.

"Let's see what kind of candy...IS IN THIS MOTHERFUCKING SHITSTAIN OF A PINATA." He brought the club down onto Tavros' collarbone.

Tavros screamed and fought back, kicking and pounding with his fists on Gamzee's chest, trying to shove the club away.

Gamzee pulled his arm back, swinging his club and hitting him across the jaw. Hitting him again and again in the ribs, on the arms, his knees, his hips, anywhere that would cause him maximum damage and pain. "It would seem that the only thing THAT CAME OUT OF THIS MOTHERFUCKING PINATA, was your vile, shit-colored blood." He stomped his foot into Tavros' lower back.

Tavros was sobbing and crying and on the verge of being passed out. He curled up and tried to hide himself, not wanting to feel anymore pain. He just wanted it to stop... He hated this part of his matesprit.

Gamzee lifted his foot again and stomped it as hard as he could into Tavros' back. "May the messiahs give you their righteous, motherfuckin mercy." He drew back the club and brought it down on the back of Tavros' head, knocking him out cold.

Tavros was welcoming the sleep that overcame him now, going entirely limp. His entire body racked with pain, bones no doubt broken. He just wanted to sleep forever...

Gamzee looked down at his 'sleeping' matesprite. "Much better..." He gently caressed the bloodied and bruised face, coating the backs of his fingers in sticky, brown blood. He brought his hand up to his mouth and thoroughly cleaned off the blood. "Vile."

There was no response from the smaller troll, as there shouldn't be. He was like a ragdoll, completely exposed to Gamzee's doings and vulnerable to anything he wanted.

Gamzee rolled the limp body over, admiring the peaceful, swollen expression his love wore as he bled on the carpeting. Gamzee pulled down his pants, staring at the love marks he'd left with his club, all of them large and swollen, some of them bleeding. Beautiful. He pulled down his own pants and straddled Tavros' thighs.

Tavros' breath hitched in his 'sleep', his own bulge involuntarily becoming engorged with blood. He would be mortified if he knew what was happening... Though if they both reached climax from this then he would know from the sheer amount of liquid he'd be sitting in a puddle of.

Gamzee smiled as their members twisted and writhed against each other, their seed flaps rubbing against each other, mixing viscous, blood-colored fluids together as the two trolls' arousals grew. Gamzee leaned down and began to lap away the blood that trickled over the paling skin of his lover. He simply loved the way the revolting lowblood tasted. Such delicious sin.

Were he awake, Tavros would have vehemently rejected this, but he was at Gamzee's mercy. He could do nothing, but lay there and unconsciously hope that Gamzee didn't do anything to permanently maim him.

Gamzee ground against Tavros, moaning as their members massaged each other. Gamzee could feel Tavros' bulge writhing closer to his nook, but he wouldn't allow it to enter him. Maybe some day, but definitely not today. He pulled away, lifting Tavros' legs up and drawing closer to his twitching, leaking seedflap.

Without any form of direction from his brain, Tavros' nook and bulge just seemed to be seeking out what it seemed they were made for; his nook twitched and quivered, as if desiring something inside it, and his bulge twisted and writhed and sought out anything it could enter besides the nook below it.

Gamzee's bulge pressed inside the tight, wet nook, and the troll couldn't help but groan in pleasure. His member seemed to writhe in delight as he thrust in and out of Tavros. But his seedflap still felt so empty. He rubbed his fingers along it, thrusting them inside as well, but it didn't give him the pleasure he desired. He gave in and rotated himself until his nook was positioned right over Tavros' seeking bonebulge.

Tavros' bonebulge easily slid out to prod at Gamzee's welcoming nook, but not sliding in. His body seemed to recognize that consent was needed here- a lot of fucking consent was needed here. The small troll began mewling in his 'sleep' from Gamzee's assault on him, his body not being able to tell the difference between general coupling and the rape that was occurring.

Gamzee ground his nook down against the prodding member, frustrated with the lack of compliance as his own member continued thrust and wriggling deep inside Tavros. He groaned, bring up a hand to stroke Tavros’ horns, right where he knew was the boys erogenous zone when he noticed a slight chip in the sturdy horns. Whoops. He continued to caress them, hoping it would encourage Tavros’ body to engage more willingly. If not, then he’d rape him with his goddamned club instead.

Tavros' body seemed to get the message, his bulge plunging into Gamzee's awaiting nook and body arching and squirming now, small noises of pain mixed with pleasure escaping him. All the moving was bad for his body, but he seemed to be enjoying himself at the same time.

"Honk!" Gamzee cried out more in surprise than anything else. His eyes fell back down to half mast as he groaned with the pleasure of Tavros buried deep inside him. The smaller troll wasn't terribly huge or really all that long at all, but he was wide, and it stretched Gamzee's nook wonderfully. "Hoooonk~" He hummed with pleasure as blood began to pool in his loins.

Tavros' bulge did its own little dance of writhing and twisting inside of Gamzee, but soon settled on a pattern of thrusting in and out shallowly, while his nook gladly sucked Gamzee in, despite the little trail of blood leaking down his bulge from his virginal status. He'd never done anything like this with anyone before, and now he wasn't even awak to enjoy it... Or not enjoy it.

Gamzee was slowly lifting and lowering himself on Tavros' fat bulge, moaning as pleasure overwhelmed him. He was moaning and grumbling as he started to leak massive quantities of pre. His body shivered when Tavros' writhing appendage brushed up against something incredibly sensitive deep inside of him. He couldn't hold back the pint of precum that spurted out inside of Tavros.

Tavros' body seized up as his body was forced to accept the genetic material inside of him. It was his first time, and not to mention troll bodies had been unused to accepting genetic material within themselves for years, due to the buckets and their ways of procreating. His body could sense it wasn't natural, or normal, but it still had his bulge fucking Gamzee and even leaking a great about of pre within his matesprite as well.

Gamzee's body also wanted to reject the fluids that were flowing into his body, but the pooling warmth inside of him was oddly pleasurable to the twisted mental state Gamzee was in. If anything, it was what pushed him over the edge to a powerful orgasm. His genetic material quickly filled Tavros, spilling out and mixing in with the blood on the floor. It looked like someone had smeared a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich on the carpet. Gamzee kept bouncing on Tavros' member, waiting to be filled with more of that tasty, filthy lowblood's fluids.

It didn't take Tavros long to finish up behind the highblood, going completely limp beneath him. There was a bucket's worth of genetic material all around them, most spilling out of them. Tavros' stomach looked almost bulging, his body quivering with the force of all the fluid within him. His body seemed to recognize that this was a natural occurrence, but at the same time rejected it.

Gamzee was in much the same predicament. His stomach was bulging out, much like it had the night before, with all of the brown genetic material inside of him. He was still incredibly swollen even though a good amount leaked out of him and onto the troll beneath him. He stood up, letting their flaccid members retract from their gaping nooks. More of Tavros' cum spilt out from his nook, but it was hardly enough to make a difference. He zipped up his pants and tried to ignore the fluids that kept leaking out of him. After all, he still had to go to work. He picked up the pie and examined it. "Thank you lowblood FOR THE MOTHERFUCKING PIE." He slurped it down as he headed out of the house, not once looking back.

 


	5. A Ragtag Bunch

Unresponsive, Tavros laid there in a puddle of his own chocolate colored blood and indigo genetic material leaking from his distended nook, looking very broken and helpless.

About an hour after the brutal beating and rape, the door squeaked open and someone walked inside the room. They stared down at the body, rage boiling up in their system, but getting angry now wouldn't benefit anyone nor save his friend. Dave whipped out his phone and dialed 911, quickly summoning an ambulance to come and save his friend.

Tavros awoke at the hospital and groaned as he opened his eyes, looking around. He had the standard IV clipped into his arm and a breathing mask over his mouth to help him while he slept. He shakily reached up to tug it off, breathing in a breath of stale hospital air. His legs ached, so did his ribs, and he could barely move.

"Put that back on." Dave demanded from where he sat, computer on one of the rolling tables that normally sat bedside for the patient's convenience. He'd been working on sbahj while he anxiously waited for Tavros to wake up. "You know you've been unconscious for almost 8 hours. Karkat stopped by and raised hell before he left about an hour ago."

Tavros cracked a smile and rested the mask back over his mouth. He pulled it off to cough out, "Wh-what happened?" He was choosing to play innocent as opposed to copping up and admitting it was Gamzee who had done this to him. It wasn't Gamzee's fault, though, he was sober; he didn't know what he was doing...

Dave gave Tavros a long look, not buying it for a second, but he knew he had to be delicate about it. "I found you unconscious in a puddle of blood. You looked kind of like someone had puked you up along with their peanut butter and jelly sandwich." Always the sensitive one, Dave was.

"Oh...um... I-I don't know... I guess I got jumped..." Tavros mumbled, pressing the mask to his face again. "Was, uh, anything stolen from the house?" he asked as he took a few deep breaths from the mask. It helped a little... He didn't want to get into this with Dave. He knew Gamzee was dangerous when he was sober, that was why it was prudent to keep him sopored up- and he had failed.

"So you're telling me you got jumped in a locked, untouched house. The only place that was a mess was your room." Dave sat back in his chair, crossing his arms. "I don't care if he's got a job, he's packing his shit up and leaving. Tonight."

"What!? No! It wasn't his fault!" Tavros exclaimed in alarm, getting into a coughing fit. He held his chest with a groan. He felt like he'd broken a rib. He looked under the bed sheets and under his hospital gown. He had casts on both legs and bandages tight around his middle to keep his ribs in place. Oh god...

"He broke both your legs, fractured 3 ribs, breaking one of them and puncturing a lung, your right hand is shattered, you've got a concussion, and your collar bone and right arm are broken. And on top of that he...” Dave couldn’t even bring himself to say it. “I'm not keeping a fucking psycho in our house!" Dave was absolutely livid, his shades practically steaming up as his temper rose.

The last part hurt to hear the most, and it was the most surprising. "I-it wasn't his fault!" Tavros shouted back, wheezing as his chest tightened up. "H-he was sober, he would never do anything like that when he's on sopor," he assured Dave, chocolaty tears pricking at his eyes. It pained him to hear all the damages, the damages Gamzee had caused, but he refused to stop defending him. That was his friend and his matesprite, and Gamzee was never like that normally.

"That's like saying a mass murderer is harmless when he's chained to a wall and sedated. If hard drugs are the only things keeping him under control, then I want even less to do with him than before. He's out of here. Today, Tavros." Dave sat back, going back to work. The discussion was over.

A few tears rolled down Tavros' face and he wiped them away with his casted hand. "I-if he shows up I want to see him," he said through the tears, trying not to blubber or stammer. He was going to be confident. "D-don't keep him from me. Promise."

"Until he proves he's not going to kill you, either Karkat or I, or both of us have to be there." It was for Tavros' own safety. He didn't particularly like the idea of having to babysit a grown man, but this was different.

"A-alright..." Tavros wouldn't enjoy it, but he could understand that Dave was just trying to show he cared. His stomach gurgled angrily, as if upset. "I f-feel a little sick..." He placed the hand with the cast onto his stomach and put the mask back on. His head hurt... Come to think of it, his entire body hurt.

"A concussion will do that to you." Dave submitted sbahj, sitting back and looking over at Tavros. He picked up the sheet of paper with that loudmouthed troll's number on it. He punched in the number and waited for Karkat to pick up. He figured he'd want to know his friend was awake.

"What the fuck do you want, asshat?!" Karkat demanded from the other side of the phone. Tavros flinched. He could here him from where he was laying. "Is Tavros awake yet? I swear to god I'm going to kick the shit out of that nooksnifing bulgemunching sopor eating fuckwad and make him shove his mirthful motherfucking massiahs up his waste chute!"

"Funny, I had something similar in mind, but he'd be in too many pieces to really be able to shove anything anywhere. And yeah, he finally woke up. Talking and everything.”

Tavros sighed as he heard their voices, but looked away and just pressed the mask over his nose and mouth, trying to ignore it. "I'll be there soon, I still can't find the fuckass clown... Not even at work. Shithead. I'll be there soon."

"Don't bother with him. Just get your ass over here and be with your friend. Or whatever the hell the troll equivalent for that sort of thing is." Dave hung up and looked over at Tavros. He reached beneath his glasses and rubbed at his bright red eyes tiredly. This was such a mess, and he hated being caught in the middle.

"WE HAVE FRIENDS TOO FUCKA-...whatever." Karkat hung up and was there quickly, running into the room to see Tavros. He was about to yell out several obscenities when a passing nurse who had heard him before shushed him. He went up to Tavros and began shaking him by the shoulders. "What the fuck are you thinking you dumbass nutbeast-screwing bitch!?" Tavros just yelped as he was shook, trying not to screw up his wounds too much.

Dave grabbed Karkat by the shoulder, pulling him back, gripping his shoulder with bruising strength. "The fuck do you think you're doing? You trying to make things worse?" Dave was glaring straight at Karkat. Even though his eyes were hidden, the anger and annoyance was evident.

"Shut the fuck up, this is partially his fault! He's the fucknut that decided it was a good fucking idea to try and be matesprites with that insane dipshit of a clown who can't even function without killing anyone or anything without eating his stupid fucking pies and then this nookfuck decides it's a good idea to try and fix him THAT'S MY FUCKING JOB!" Karkat wasn't jealous of Tavros impeaching on his moiraillegiance duties. Nope.

"Look, the dude was almost beaten to death. How much of an asshole do you have to be to get pissed off at him. He's in excruciating pain and you’re only making things worse. What'd you even come here for anyway?" Dave made sure to stand between Tavros and Karkat. He didn't want to have to protect him from this asshole dipshit too. Was this what being moirails was like? Who in the hell would want something like this?  
Karkat crossed his arms and scowled, but didn't say much else. He looked back to Tavros and glared, but gave some comforting words, "I'm going to beat the shit out of his clown nosed face for doing this to you."

"That's better." Dave patted Karkat's head. "Good job, you're learning." He hoped his sarcasm wouldn't be lost on the shorter troll.

"Fuck off, bulgebite," Karkat snapped as he promptly sat down on the chair beside Tavros' bed and crossed his arms. Now it was just the waiting game, he supposed.

"You're the only one of us who's ever seen a "bulge" dude." Dave could only assume that it was a part of the alien's really rather private anatomical bits. "Just shut up and let him sleep."

Karkat grumbled and sighed, looking over the wounded troll. He was going to kill Gamzee when he got his hands on him...

"Well shit, that crazy clown really did a number on you, huh. Kinda wish I'd been there to see it. But damn, and I thought _I_ was cruel to you." Vriska, who looked far more interested than concerned, was followed by a rather resigned looking Kanaya.

"H-hi, Vriska, hi Kanaya," Tavros murmured as he pulled the mask off his face. He would have yanked it off long ago but, both karkat and Dave had yelled at him to keep it on. He could breathe just fine, now! It was when he was sleeping was it supposed to be on. Kanaya moved around to the other side to feel Tavros' temple and give him a quick patdown to make sure everything had already been taken care of. When she looked satisfied she pulled back to stand by Dave, crossing her arms and waiting.  
Vriska sat down on the edge of the bed. "Oh, and guess what." She slapped Tavros' chest in excitement, knowing full well that it was painful for him, and simply chose not to care. "I invited another friend of yours."  
Tavros grunted as his chest was slapped and blushed hard, face flushing with his chocolaty blood. He and Vriska had had a...thing. It couldn't really be called a kismesis... Because Tavros had been flushed for her, and she had been caliginous for him. It had just ended...badly. "Wh-who?"

"What, you can't guess? I know you're not the sharpest tack in the box, but you can't be that slow." She leaned back, resting on top of the solid casts that covered Tavros' legs.

Dave caught on instantly. "Jesus fucking Christ, you didn't."

Tavros grunted in surprise, glaring halfheartedly at the other troll. Everyone seemed to be catching on but him. Karkat immediately started spewing curses at Vriska for doing what she'd done. "What? What? I don't get it," Tavros said, trying to get above the yelling.

Gamzee burst into the room, an unusual look of worry spread across his face. He hurried over to Tavros and leaned down, hugging him as best he could. "I'm so sorry, brother, if I had been there instead of sleepin on the motherfuckin beach, I woulda done pimped the bitch outta that motherfucker, split ‘im in half with my bare hands, I swear on a motherfuck." He kissed his swollen cheek, trying to kiss wherever there weren't bandages, but it was proving difficult.

"Ohh, oh this is brilliant!!!!!!!!" Vriska let out a short bark of laughter at the ridiculousness. The stupid bastard didn't even know he'd done it.

Tavros flinched as Gamzee kissed him all over and awkwardly pressed against his chest with a nervous smile. "N-no, it's ok-kay..." he mumbled as he looked down, gulping nervously. He was unable to look Gamzee in the eye. It made him shake and tremble. Out of nowhere, Karkat suddenly tackled Gamzee from behind, hanging onto him from behind and locking his arms around his neck.

"Hey, with all the motherfuckin violence up in here? Chill out, brother, you're keepin me from breathin right." Gamzee gently pulled at Karkat's arms, slightly concerned about his windpipe getting crushed.

Vriska was watching with a sick, wide grin. She felt she deserved to see this unfold after the heartbreak her spineless boyfriend put her through.

Dave gave her a long look out of the corner of his eye, feeling a sudden hatred seeping through his veins.

"This is your fault you fucking dipshit!" Karkat screamed, practically throttling the troll from behind. "You went on a sober rampage and beat the shit out of your matesprite and left us with this bullshit and I'm going to fucking kill you why the fuck weren't you on your fucking sopor!?"

Tavros' eyes went wide and he tried to sit up. "K-Karkat, stop!"

Gamzee creased his brow and thought back. He could usually remember, for the most part, what happened when he was sober. There had only been a few instances where he'd black out and not remember a thing. "...I did? I wouldn't do something that fucked up, brother..."

"Would he be fucking in a hospital coincidentally right after you went sober!? Use your fucking mushed up sopor pie brain, fuckass, and think about it! Now you fucking apologize to him or we're keeping you two apart for good!" Karkat threatened as he dropped back to the ground and gave Gamzee a shove. He wasn't afraid to get personal with the other.

Gamzee looked down at Tavros from where he stood, meekly fiddling with his fingers like his matesprite often did. "I'm really fuckin sorry, brother. You know I'd never mean it... I don't even remember..." The thought that these things were happening and he couldn't even remember frightened him.

Tavros didn't say anything, looking away and holding his chest with arms crossed. "I-it's fine, I'm alright now. That's um, right matters, right?" It seemed to anger Karkat even more, but Tavros said nothing.

"It ain't alright, brother...I fuckin did this to you and the whole thing ain't honking a horn round up in my think pan..."

"You mean ringing a bell, you stupid clown." Vriska hopped off the bed. "Well, I've had my laughs, and now it's gotten all boring. I'm outta here. Don't die Tavros, ya hear me? " She pushed the door open and walked out. "You coming, Kanaya?”

Kanaya was standing by quietly, glaring at Gamzee, still lurking close on the other side of Tavros, but soon followed after Vriska. She seemed not to have words more, but made a hand motion to Karkat. She would call him later.

"I-I'm really okay, I mean, I passed out before it hurt too much, okay? Don't worry yourself," Tavros whispered as he wiped his eyes and mustered a smile to Gamzee. "I'm okay, I promise."

Gamzee couldn't bring himself to smile back. He slowly backed out of the room, unable to look away from his love no matter how much it hurt him. The second he was out of that door he absconded as fast as his legs could carry him.

It hurt Tavros a lot more to see Gamzee running away from him than he could ever be hurt physically. He wiped away the chocolaty tears sliding down his cheeks, his hiccups making him flinch him pain. He curled up on his side and replaced the breathing mask, yanking the sheet over his head while Karkat cursed and ran after Gamzee.

Dave stood in the room awkwardly, not quite sure what to do. He went over to the side of the bed and just offered his company. If Tavros wanted to talk—with a punctured lung he couldn't imagine that to be very comfortable—Dave would be there to listen, but if he wanted silence, then Dave was just a warm body beside him to easy the loneliness.

Tavros stayed curled up and hunched over on his side, lying painfully on his casts and his ribs as he shook and cried silently. He wanted Gamzee with him, but he knew he shouldn't... He felt sick and horrible and his body ached and throbbed all over... But he wanted his matesprite. Because Gamzee still was his matesprite.

“Hey, Tavros,” Dave leaned over, trying to see into the face of the horribly abused troll, “can you answer one thing for me?”

"Wh-what?" Tavros asked, hiccupping and wiping his chocolaty tears away. He didn't want Dave to patronize him (or Gamzee) too...

"What exactly is a Moirail?”

Tavros was confused by the seeming out of the blue question. “Well, it’s someone that, without them, you’d kind of...cease to be? Someone that keeps your head on straight, I guess. Like a best friend and then some. Tradition says a moirail exists...basically to keep you alive.”

“Okay, cool. Then I guess I’ll be your moirail then.” He stood up from the bed and went back to the uncomfortable hospital chair when he’d heard a PesterChum alert.

"H-hunh? But I thought you and John were..." Tavros seemed confused as to Dave's meaning. Was he trying to say he'd protect him? But Tavros could hardly be anyone's moirail, he was terrible at calming people, at reassuring them... He was just bad at it.

"Humans don't do that confusing quadrant shit. We're bros, a whole other grouping all together." Dave didn't even glance in Tavros' direction. "Unles you say no, I'm your moirail. Even if you say no, I don't really care, I'll still be your moirail." Clearly, he had a full understanding of Trollian relationships.

"Oh...um... Okay, I'll be your moirail too, Dave," Tavros replied with a weak smile. "But I'm gonna just lay down and try to sleep for a while..."

"Yeah, okay. You want me to stay the night?" He kind of hoped Tavros would want to be alone. The idea of sleeping in a hospital chair was unappealing. But as this new title of his implied, he'd be there when needed.

“No, um, I'm alright, you can go whenever," Tavros told him with a deep breath as he got as comfortable as he could and fluffed his pillow. "I think I'm good..." He still felt sick and shitty, but he definitely felt...better.

"Okay." Dave closed his computer. "I brought your cellphone, so you can text me whenever." Dave grabbed all his stuff and stood up, texting John to come pick him up as he headed out the door. "See you tomorrow.”

“See ya, Dave. ...Thanks." Tavros knew his new moirail was too cool to accept his thanks, but he put it out there anyway in case he did. He smiled as he closed his eyes and sighed, getting nice and comfortable before he slipped off into sleep.


	6. You Should Do as You're Told

Equius was sitting in Tavros' room, fiddling with one of his robotics projects. He couldn't believe he was in such a place at such a ridiculous hour, watching over this lowblood. Even if the lowblood was a friend of sorts, or rather, more of an acquaintance. But Vriska had asked him to do so, and he owed her a favor anyhow. Though he couldn't help but wonder why she cared so much for the brown-blooded troll. He looked at the clock, 3:12. He was damned tired, but he had to keep watch in case the highblood came around.

Gamzee had spent a lot of time thinking, he'd spent a lot of time wandering about, and everything just felt worse. He had hurt his matesprite, the one person he'd meant to keep a hold of and make sure nothing bad happened to... But Tavros looked like he'd just had an old fashioned beat down—and Gamzee had done it? It just made it worse. He was getting angrier, despite how sopored up he was. He found himself back at the hospital and slipped inside without anyone seeing, seething with anger and frustration as he sought out Tavros' room.

Equius could hear the clunking of shoes as someone made their way down the hallway. He stood up, tightening his fists as he prepared for the worst: a sober Gamzee. He glared at the door, just daring anyone to enter through it.

Gamzee shoved the door open without ceremony and saw Equius inside. He grinned, fangs turning over his lips as he strode inside. He glanced over Tavros, who was sleeping happily and helplessly...and as much as the voices in his head told him to _hurt, maim, kill, rape_...something else in the back of his mind refused to let him think that about Tavros. He turned his sights on Equius and grinned. "What's up, motherfucker?"

"Highblood, why are you here?" Equius demanded, taking a defensive step back. "I'm under strict..." He shuddered a little bit, sweat beading around his temples, "... _very_ strict orders to protect the lowblood. Especially from you."

"Protect the filthy lowblood FROM ME!?" Gamzee shouted, something making him flinch as his head twinged. Tavros twisted and groaned in bed. It seemed like his underlying conscious wasn't going to let him hurt Tavros or anything... Or even cause him discomfort. "Maybe we should take this outside, motherfucker."

"I was...I was ordered to remain here." He was struggling to defy the Highblood's wishes, but a life was at stake here. "I will not leave...unless...if you were to order me to do so..." He was beginning to sweat, the idea of someone greater than he bossing him around like the scum he was.

"Well I'm giving your scummy lowblood ass a motherfuckin' order then," Gamzee hissed as he narrowed his vision and took a few steps back, falling back to the door, waiting for Equius to follow. Oh did he have some good plans for them...

"Y-Yes, highblood." Equius' glands were working overtime as sweat started to trickle down his face, neck and back. He followed behind Gamzee, face flushed deep blue as he tried to contain his easily excited bulge. He hoped the highblood wouldn't notice. Oh how ashamed he would be!

Gamzee beckoned them both out until they were behind a wall next to a bathroom, hidden out of the way of the hall. No one would be able to see them, the hall ended behind them... He grinned wide as he took notice of the blue blood's crotch and reached out to grip it. "Gettin' excited there, motherfucker?"

"H-Highblood!" Equius was practically brought to his knees right then and there as he whimpered at the harsh grope. "Wha-What are you doing! You'll dirty your hands..." He backed up against the wall, trying to cover up the growing problem.

"Motherfuckin shit for blood like you needs to BE TAUGHT A LESSON, RIGHT?" Gamzee cackled and gripped Equius by the shoulders, shoving him down to his knees. "Kneel, lowblood," he sneered, grinning as he looked down on the pretentious blueblood beneath him.

"Y-Yes, please put me in my place, highblood. I'm nothing compared to someone like you!" Equius was sweating profusely as he dropped to his knees before Gamzee, looking anywhere but up at the juggalo's face.

"I'm going to fuck your hoofbeast shit up," Gamzee cackled as he slid a hand into the band of his pants and undid the zipper and the button, tongue sliding over his fangs. "See with my little shit for blood matesprite all tacked up in his bandages and shit I can't get no release... You gonna help me out LIKE YOU SHOULD, LOWBLOOD?"

"Is...is that an order, highblood?" Equius licked his lips as he stared at Gamzee's half-hard bulge. He was feeling such an incredible pull of inner struggle. On one hand, this was Tavros' matesprite, who he'd been ordered to keep away, but to go against the highblood's wishes and deny him the pleasure he so desperately sought... Well, by doing this he was technically keeping Gamzee away from Tavros...

"Everything I say is a MOTHERFUCKING ORDER!" the highblood shouted as he shoved the tentacle-like bulge in Equius' face. He would get what he fucking wanted, and that was to spread his genetic material all over Equius and in his tightass nook. Equius probably wasn't a virgin, but whatever... He just needed to fuck something up.

Equius opened his mouth and took the warm member in between his lips, being careful of his broken teeth. He sucked at the tip, tongue dancing around the sensitive flesh as he'd seen so many times in the videos from his "private collection." He couldn't take in much more than half of Gamzee's large bulge without gagging.

Gamzee promptly shoved himself in down his throat without warning, moaning and growling with pleasure. His bulge seemed to do a lot of the work on its own, writhing in Equius' throat and pulsing inside him, wetting him with his pre...

Equius grunted when his throat was suddenly forced to accept the writhing length. He whimpered as he tried to breathe while swallowing down a good cup's worth of pre. His own bulge was writhing about in his pants, desperate for attention, but Equius wouldn't let his hands go anywhere near his groin without the highblood's permission.

"Mmmmm, shit," Gamzee moaned as he thrust his hips and fucked Equius' mouth and throat. He promptly yanked out before he gushed any more precum and reached down to hold his bulge still. "Up against the motherfucking wall, SHAMEGLOBES OUT, FILTHY LOWBLOOD!"

Equius got up from where he was kneeling and turned to face the wall, sliding his shorts and tights down until his ass was showing. "Please...use me, highblood. Command me; abuse me!" Equius groaned as he spread his wet, twitching seedflap for Gamzee to see. His bulge was writhing between his legs, looking to create any sort of friction.

Gamzee purred and gripped his wriggling bulge as he guided it to Equius' nook, sliding it along his seedflap, but not entering. "Leaking like the fucking lowblood you are... Spreadin' your seedflap for any motherfucker to come in and use." With that, the capricious troll allowed his tentacle-like bulge to thrust into Equius' nook, stretching it out wide around his girth.

"Haa, haa...only for you, Highblood." When Gamzee suddenly plunged deep inside him, Equius' hands went to the wall, fingers breaking through the drywall with his incredible strength. He let out a strangulated cry as his nook was practically torn open by the sudden intrusion. But receiving it rough like this was good, and only turned Equius on more. Streams of sweat were practically pouring down his body, making his long hair stick to his skin and made the sound of the tentacular bulge as it fucked him even louder as it moved around his dripping wet nook.

Ewww, Equius was making a puddle of sweat beneath them... Gamzee nearly gagged at the smell and the feeling of the sweat under his hands as he gripped Equius by the hips and let his bulge do the job. He groaned as his own seedflap twitched and quivered for something to fill it. He pushed closer, shoving himself deeper inside Equius, and reached around to grip the blueblood's bulge, guiding it between their legs to his own nook. It was a bit of a stretch, but he managed it.

Equius felt so ashamed of his sweat, he looked over his shoulder and could tell it displeased the highblood. He felt Gamzee grab his bulge and he moaned, happy that it was finally getting some attention, but his member could only barely reach Gamzee's hot nook, the tip barely poking in. "H-highblood, I don't want to dirty you with my inferior genetic material..."

Gamzee growled and suddenly grabbed Equius' hand instead, yanking it back to shove his fingers towards his empty nook. "Then put your clammy, sweaty FUCKING FINGERS TO USE, LOWBLOOD!" he shouted as he dumped more and more pre within the blueblood.

Equius could feel his gut gurgle as it was filled with pre. He whimpered as his normally taught, flat stomach started to distend. His trembling hands began to massage the highblood's slit, trying not to be too rough. "Do you feel good, highblood?"

"Motherfuck yeah I feel good..." Gamzee was breathing heavy, panting even as he thrust one last time and filled Equius with his genetic material. He stayed where he was, not pulling out, just letting himself fill Equius up like a bucket. There was probably nothing dirtier than that... He wouldn't know; he wasn't an expert on sex or anything.

Equius cried out as his body was filled to the brim with Gamzee's indigo fluids, dark blue tears of pain seeped out form the corners of his eyes as his stomach was stretched what felt like impossibly far. Equius let his upper half slump to the floor, leaving his shameglobes where they were should Gamzee want anything further. His own bulge was still rock hard and begging for release. Little puddles of pre were forming beneath him; he desperately needed to cum. "P-Please...highblood...abuse me more...please let me cum..."

Gamzee slapped Equius on the ass and yanked out as the amount of genetic material slowed to a drip. "Using you as a motherfucking bucket WASN'T ENOUGH!?" He struck Equius' ass once more and pulled back, already doing up his pants and taking a few steps away.

Just the thought of Gamzee using him to the point where he cared not for his, this disgusting lowblood's release was enough to push Equius over the edge. He came with a grunt as his genetic material began to gush forth from his painfully hard bulge. He let himself fall to the floor in the pool of his own fluids as his flow began to decrease. He tried to keep as much of Gamzee's seed inside him, as it cause him the great discomfort he so deserved. "Thank you, Highblood, sir..."

Gamzee backed away slowly, head getting fuzzy as he backed away and slowly moved on, much like he was a zombie. His head was hazy as he wandered down the hall back down to Tavros' room. He seemed to be coming back to himself... He smiled wide as he came across Tavros' room, door open for him. He wandered in and plopped down in the seat beside the bed, smiling lazily.

Tavros slowly opened his eyes as he heard someone enter the room haphazardly. He managed a weak smile, though he was a little nervous, being around his matesprite again... "H-hey," he whispered, before coughing loudly.

"Heeeeyy..." His brow creased when Tavros started coughing. "You're not dyin are you brother? I'd hate for you to be all dyin up in here cause of me." 

"No, no, it's alright," Tavros assured him as he started to sit up. He looked around and gulped. Equius was supposed to be there 'protecting' him... But he was sort of glad he wasn't there. He leaned over and threw his arms around Gamzee's neck. "I missed you so much..." He pulled them back a little so that he could lean more on the bed and be comfortable, taking Gamzee with him.

Tavros bonked Gamzee on the head with his cast, but the taller troll didn't say anything about it. He crawled in after Tavros, noticing with disdain that his pants, shoes, and even his socks were a sweaty mess, but he didn’t know why.

Tavros wasn't much for moving right then, so he didn't bother looking at Gamzee other than his face. He kissed his nose and scooted over to let Gamzee scoot in closer. "Stay with me all night, promise?" He didn't care if Equius came back and demanded that Gamzee left... He'd make Gamzee order Equius to let him stay.

However, Equius wouldn't be much of a problem. He'd passed out in a pool of his fluids with his shorts around his knees and stomach full of genetic material. The pair would be safe till morning, or at least until Dave came, then Gamzee might be in a touch of trouble. But for now, he snuggled up next to his matesprite. Kissing him until the smaller troll fell back asleep.

Tavros fell asleep in no time, glad to have his matesprite back to his normal self. In the morning, however, he sat up, a sick feeling in his gurgling stomach, and promptly turned over to vomit off the side of the bed.

"...That’s...fuckin gross." Dave stepped away from the bedside, looking at his soiled shoe with distaste. "You looked like you were having a nightmare, you okay?"

"O-oh...was I?" Tavros wheezed as he shakily covered his mouth. He wiped away the bile there and gagged as he looked down at the brown tinted fluid. Disgusting... "Eww..." Trolls didn't usually get sick... Not physically sick with the stomach anyway.

"No shit. Push that orange button and get the nurse's ass in here to clean up your mess." Now slightly more irritated than he had been when he'd gotten here an hour ago, Dave went back to his chair. "Did that creepy, horse-pervert tell you he was leaving? He was gone when I got here."

"Oh, no... I woke up and Gamzee was, uh, here... And we cuddled and I fell back asleep," Tavros murmured as he pressed the button and waited for the nurse to come in. He rubbed his stomach and sighed. That wasn't...normal.

Dave was silently fuming when Tavros told him that Gamzee had been there. That good for nothing horse porn loving creep... Well, it didn't seem like anything bad had happened, so he didn't bring it up, but he gave Tavros a disapproving look anyways.

Tavros felt a little guilty... Maybe he should have kept that to himself. "S-sorry, Dave..." He fiddled with the cast on his hand. "Nothing bad happened, he just came in and he crawled in bed with me and we cuddled... And I woke up and puked."

Dave sighed, leaning back in his chair, watching as the nurse came in, going over to inspect Tavros. It took her a while before she finally left, probably going to find an assistant so they could run some routine tests on their somewhat critically injured patient. “Well, I have class in an hour. I gotta go. I’ll see if I can find someone to come keep you company.”

"Alright, thanks, Dave," Tavros chirped, smiling wide at his moirail. Moirail...it felt great to be able to think that. With that thought, Tavros hunkered down and went right back to sleep. His stomach gurgled again, but didn't bother him too much.


	7. Hate Sex Ain't My Thing

It was a long time before Tavros was let out of the hospital, and even then he still had the casts on his leg and arm, and the road to recovery and physical therapy would be tough to juggle alongside school. But Gamzee would be there, to help in any whimsical way he could. And Tavros also had Dave to keep an eye over him and keep sober Gamzee away. 

Tavros was just excited to get back on his feet. Metaphorically of course... He would have to take a little longer than just a few weeks more of healing his bones before he would really be able to walk around without problems. But he wasn't worried! Determination sped up the process, right? He was rolling the wheelchair on his own as they went home, just happy to get out of the hospital. "What do you guys want for dinner?" he asked as he went for the elevator.

"Anything you fuckin want, brother."

"For once, I agree. You finally got out of the hospital so you should decide what we all eat." Dave was walking alongside Tavros as Gamzee pushed him in a wiggly line.

Tavros smiled and reached up to smack the button for their stop. He waited patiently, smiling rather wide. He was just happy to be back home! When they got up to the house he waited for the door to be opened and promptly rolled in right to the kitchen. "Let's have horn-beast burgers and human roasted featherbeast!"

 _'Who the hell eats burgers_ and _chicken.'_ Dave thought to himself, but he didn't say anything. It'd been a while since he'd seen Tavros this happy. "I'll get started then." He sauntered off into the kitchen and threw on the apron. Yes, Dave Strider even made aprons look cool as shit.

"I want to cook too," Tavros said firmly with a nod as he crossed his arms. He wasn't about to be found helpless! Besides, lord knew what these two would cook without him there to help. Gamzee only knew how to bake, and he wasn't even sure if Dave _could_ cook!

Dave just looked down at Tavros from where he stood at the counter. The troll's head barely made it past the counter, there was no way he could do anything without getting in the way. "I don’t know if you can reach the grill, man.”

"I want to help," Tavros huffed, hands on his hips...er...thighs. He made the gesture known. "At least let me supervise so that you don't kill anyone! Or each other!"

"Why would we kill each other?" Dave really didn't understand why Tavros was so bothered.

"C'mon, brother, don't be gettin all upset over nothin. You just gotta get your mad chill on..." Gamzee scooped Tavros up, noticing that he'd gotten a little heavier. "You been all up in that weight gainin, brother?"

Tavros yelped and huffed. He looked down at his stomach awkwardly. His thighs had thickened a bit... And he did have a sudden amount of chub on him that he wasn't used to... He was a fairly active person. "Maybe it was the hospital food... They fed me like a starved horse!"

Gamzee leaned in and gently bit the slightly pudgy cheek, licking the little reddening indents. "You still lookin fuckin cute though, brother..."

Dave rolled his eyes as he got to work on the burgers, mixing garlic powder, diced onions and ketchup into the ground beef like he was….somewhat sure he remembered his bro doing. God could his bro cook...not that he often did.

Tavros managed a giggle and wiggled about. "Put me back in the chair, Gamzee!" He nuzzled his matesprit. But he really did need to get back in the chair. "I can move around fine, okay?"

Gamzee wasn't ready to put him down just yet and twirled around with him as Dave worked on preparing the food. "You want anyone else to come over?"

"No, I think I want it to be just us," Tavros said with a smile, awkwardly trying to pull himself closer to Gamzee and give his makeup clad cheek a kiss. "And, uh, seriously, put me down, Gamzee..." He was starting to feel like they were tottering a bit.

 Gamzee flopped back on the couch, his strength reserves completely used up. "Sorry bout that, brother, I could go and get your wheeled device so you can be all up in that bitch."

 Tavros smiled and nodded. He squirmed and hopped his way onto the couch with a nod. "That would be great, Gamzee. And you might have to help me into bed tonight, okay? But not too much, I can still do a lot of stuff on my own!" He didn't want to be dependent, he just wanted a little help here and there.

"I can do a lot more than help you into bed, brother." Gamzee leaned in and kissed Tavros. "Honk~" He gave him one more peck before heading back into the kitchen to get his chair. Gamzee and Dave gave each other a heated glare, but said nothing, as they'd made a vow before Tavros came home that they wouldn't argue. Right away, at least.

Tavros giggled and gave Gamzee a playful push. He waited patiently for his matesprit to come back with the chair, but made sure to listen in in case his two red romances decided to have a spat. He wouldn't allow it, though.

Gamzee came back soon enough with his chair, but not before enjoying a slice of pie. "Here ya go, brother. This thing is fuckin bitch tits awesome." Gamzee licked some of the sopor slime from his lips. "Need help gettin all up in this fuckin four-wheeled device?"

Tavros smiled as he noticed the sopor all over Gamzee's lips. "No, I got it." He reached out to grab the handles and lifted himself up as best he could. He more or less flopped onto the wheelchair. He huffed and got comfortable before crossing his arm with an accomplished grin. "See, I got it, just fine."

Dave sighed, keeping the small smile t seeing the two happy together tucked away. True, he still hated Gamzee, quite a lot after the incident, but Tavros was happy, so there was no reason to be upset. The two were so preoccupied by their fun that they didn't seem to hear an angry banging on the door. Which Dave thought would've been impossible not to hear. He wiped off his hands on Tavros' rather effeminate looking apron and went to the door to see who it was that had come to bother them.

"Finally you—what the fuck are you wearing?" Karkat spat as he put his hands on his hips. "Whatever, not important! I heard the ignoramus got out of the hospital and I need to talk with him and Gamzee, so let me the fuck in."

Dave just stared at Karkat before slowly beginning to close the door. He really didn't think he'd be able to tolerate the anger this troll seemed to be constantly marinating in.

Karkat shoved through and stomped over to see Gamzee and Tavros in front of the couch, doing a rather cutesy back and forth of nose nuzzled and cheek kisses. "Oh god, drown me in the bitter puddle of your lovey-dovey-pity crap," he groaned, crossing his arms.

"Oh, uh, hi, Karkat," Tavros said sheepishly as he smiled up at the other small troll.

"Heeey, brother!" Gamzee leaned and wrapped an arm around Tavros, giving him a gentle noogie. "What miracle brought you here? Yo, Tavros just got out of that blasphemous place, brother. They didn't believe in miracles man!" Gamzee seemed to have slightly digressed from his initial point. "So what the fuck is up, brother?"

Karkat rolled his eyes as Tavros squealed and giggled under Gamzee's touch. "Ugh, you and your stupid ass miracles. Whatever, I just needed to make sure of something." He grabbed Gamzee by the front of his shirt. "Every fucking morning you're gonna eat a pie, and every fucking night you're going to eat one too. You got this shit?"

Gamzee looked down at Karkat, blinking a bit. "Uhh...yeah, brother, I've been eatin all my pies, n I ain't had a blackout since."

"Leave him alone. You don't live here, so how the hell would you now what's going on." Dave walked into the kitchen with a plate of uncooked burgers he was about to take outside to grill. "Can't you just be happy for once?"

"I'm about to fucking mOVE IN IF HE HAS ANOTHER ONE OF HIS FUCKING EPISODES!" Karkat shouted, steaming at the human. No one had asked for his pale little pink monkey ass to be here!

"Calm down, Karkat, I've been making sure when I can," Tavros promised with a shy smile.

"There, you see? We're all fine and dandy without you. You can leave now."

"Aww, come in, don't be like that! Don't kick a brother out! Let him eat with us." Gamzee sat back by Tavos, pinching his cheeks. "Do it for your fucking Moirail, brother!"

Tavros giggled and taking Gamzee's wrist in his good hand and pushing it away. "You should stay and eat with us, Karkat. We're having human hornbeast burgers and cluckbeast!"

Karkat took a very long, drawn out and dramatic sigh. But he flopped down next to Gamzee with a huff, arms crossed, anyway.

Dave frowned, but didn't say anything. He took the patties outside to the grill and put them on, covering them before heading back inside to work on the chicken.

Gamzee leaned over, knocking Karkat on the head with his long, wavy horns. "Are you two fucking Kismesis yet?"

"Don't fucking remind me." Karkat shoved Gamzee back as he huffed and crossed his arms again. Tavros couldn't help his giggling. He rolled the wheelchair over a bit to look out on the deck where Dave was grilling the hornbeast burgers. "How long do you think it'll take?"

"I think Karkat should ask." Gamzee kept nudging and prodding Karkat, trying to get him to take the initiative. He didn't understand why Karkat didn't just take the plunge. Well...he guessed he had when he'd started making out with Dave all those weeks ago when Gamzee had just recently moved in, but still...

Karkat rolled his eyes and muttered 'nooksniffers' under his breath as he hopped up to look outside. "Hey, bulgemuncher, when the hell are these things gonna be done, anyway?"

Dave looked at Karkat and sighed, turning back to the burgers. "Burgers just got flipped and I put the chicken on a couple minutes ago. What you're going to help?" Dave turned back to the grill, cursing when the apron came undone in the back. His super cool bow of cool manliness had come undone.

"Fuck off and die," Karkat practically shouted, stomping back in with arms crossed as he flushed candy red. Oh god he was so embarrassed he couldn't even express his hate properly!

Dave was even more confused than before as he tied his apron back up. "The hell is his problem?"

When Karkat came back, Tavros was in Gamzee's lap, the pair of them having gotten a little more...inappropriate with their affections. Gamzee looked over at a very flushed Karkat. "Back already? Does he hate you yet?"

"NO I THINK I'M MAKING HIM INDIFFERENT FUCK!" Karkat shouted, a little louder than he probably should have been. "And stop that, the both of you! No flush-buckets happening around here!"

Gamzee held on even tighter to Tavros, a little upset that their moment had been interrupted. "Why do you always go for fuckin black romances, brother? Red ones are the motherfuckin bitch tits." He nuzzled against Tavros, as if proving his point.

Tavros giggled and gasped as he was squeezed tight, grabbing Gamzee's horns to balance himself and squeaked. He blushed and nodded to Karkat. "Umm, I tried a black romance...it didn't work out well."

"That's because you don't know how to hate properly, fuckass. Like that...dumb...Egbert..."

"Troll romance makes no fuckin sense." Dave muttered as he came in to let everyone know dinner was almost ready. "Almost time to eat, get your asses in the kitchen."

"All you have to know is that two are special friendships and two are sexual!" Tavros chimed in with a smile as he was set on the chair. He rolled himself into the kitchen to get his food first, smiling wide and thanking Dave happily as he rolled right back into the living room.

Karkat muttered curses all the way up until he stood before Dave, and promptly gave the human a shove before taking his food.

Dave thought about that for a moment. Why would anyone want to have sex with someone they despised? He was brought out of his thoughts at the shove and his attention was drawn to Karkat who, to his knowledge, had been trying to instigate that sort of hate relationship he'd tried having with John. "You know, I won't judge you if angry hate sex is your thing, but just for the record I'm not into that."

"WHY WON'T YOU HATE ME!?"

Tavros rolled his eyes as he helped himself onto the couch with Gamzee once more. "We should watch a movie!"

"Why do you want me to hate you so badly?" Dave asked, unaffected as he picked up a barbecued chicken leg and dressed his burger.

"Sure, what movie do you wanna watch?" Gamzee asked, taking Tavros and positioning him between his legs again.

"BECAUSE I HATE YOU AND I WANT TO MAKE CALIGINOUS-BUCKETS WITH YOU, YOU SNOTTY IGNORAMOUS!!"

Tavros flinched. "...Ew." That was gross to imagine his friends doing that. It made him flush as he realized, oh god, he and Gamzee had never even used buckets when they fooled around! He didn't think about _that_ time. It didn't count.

"...You do know humans don't fill buckets with their jizz right? And I told you, hate sex isn't my thing." Dave sat down on the couch next to Gamzee and Tavros.

Gamzee looked over at Dave and, feeling responsible as Karkat's Moirail, leaned over and whispered. "You should give 'im a motherfuckin chance. If he gets all flushed its kinda cute."

"Karkat means well," Tavros assured him from where he sat in Gamzee's lap, curled up as best he could be with casts on his feet. He watched Karkat sulk off into the kitchen to eat instead with a sad frown.

Dave sighed, _'Dramatic asshole...'_ he thought to himself before calling out to Karkat. "Look, no one bursts into someone else's house just to eat by themselves. Get your annoying ass in here. We're watching a movie."

"Hate me first."

"Karkat, please come eat out here," Tavros called, trying to be comforting, "uhh...Dave promises he'll _try_ to hate you!" He made a shushing noise at Dave to keep him from protesting. Karkat peeked his head out and scowled, but slowly trudged back in.

“Well, what are you doin all standin up ‘n shit. Grab a seat, brother!” Dave had gotten up to go and put in a dvd, leaving a spot on the couch open. Unfortunately, it was the only spot one could sit in without taking the floor.

Karkat glared at Dave and went to sit on the arm of the couch, right beside where Dave could be sitting. He glared at Tavros who was beginning to giggle and look away.

Dave went back to his spot, mildly surprised Karkat hadn't just up and stolen it. He shrugged to himself and plopped down in his spot, grabbing his plate and a beer he'd grabbed for himself.

It wasn't long before Karkat just slid down and squished himself between the arm of the couch and Dave, not giving any explanation. It left them all very squished, and Dave and Gamzee rather uncomfortably close.

Dave and Gamzee shared a look of mutual displeasure, both deciding that they were far too close for comfort. Dave put his food and beer down on the side table before grabbing Karkat around the waist and pulling him into his lap before scooching away from Gamzee. It was a bit difficult to eat with a troll on his lap, but he'd manage.

Karkat shrieked in surprise, face flushed bright red, but refused to move, sitting rather rigidly. Tavros couldn't help but snort and laugh at Karkat. He just nuzzled his matesprite and kissed his cheek.

Gamzee grinned a broad, toothy grin. "See Karkat? This is way better." He kissed along Tavros' neck, nibbling and sucking a bit here and there.

"If you guys aren't going to watch, just take it into your room already." Dave muttered grumpily.

Tavros tried to keep from making noise, the occasional giggle escaping him. "S-sorry, uhh, I-I'm watching," he squeaked out between his giggles. Karkat was groaning at their PDA. Very much not appreciated.

Dave finished off his food and took another swig of his beer. "Just get a room. You guys can watch after you do your thing."

Gamzee didn't hold any argument and picked Tavros up as he stood. "Sounds like a fuckin good plan to me."

Tavros squeaked, and clung tight to Gamzee. "Um, maybe we should bring the chair too, I mean at least later we won't forget to bring it with us when it's bedtime," he said as he tried not to think about falling.

But Gamzee wasn't listening. He just carried Tavros off, obviously in quite the hurry to get behind a closed door.

Dave rolled his eyes. "You can sit on the couch and get off me now."

Karkat thought about it for a moment and crossed his arms. "Fuck no." And he ended that conversation promptly.

Tavros blushed as he was carried off, clinging to Gamzee tightly until he was laid down on the bed. "Um, uh- b-b-bucket!" he blurted out. He did not want to go through this without a bucket this time, dammit! He was being proper!

Gamzee knew it was proper etiquette to have a bucket handy, but he enjoyed Tavros' taste too much to want it to go to waste. "But you taste so fuckin good...I want to swallow everyfuckin drop like you're feedin me sopor or some good shit.

"N-no, I mean- um..." That was just...Tavros wasn't sure, he just... "I-I don't know, e-either we have a bucket, or...um...I th-think we should..." He was trying to suggest they go all the way perhaps... Suddenly his mind was filled of _that_ time. And it only made him want it more. He wanted for there to be better, newer memories of his times with Gamzee than the crueler ones

Gamzee blinked, "Ohh you wanna have sex!" He grinned, "Shit, brother, we ain't even had sex yet! We need to have some motherfuckin sex!" Gamzee was getting excited, in more ways than one. He was completely unaware of the time he'd raped Tavros and the time he'd had sex with Equius in the hospital. He began to strip himself of his shirt before reaching down and helping Tavros out of his.

Tavros was about to correct the other, but just smiled and nodded. "Y-yeah...uh, let's do it." He helped himself out of his shirt and then tried to push his pants down around his casts. "You gotta be, uh, careful, though, okay?"

"Don't you worry, brother, I'll be real fuckin gentle, like a motherfuckin tinkerbull gentle." He undid his spotted pants and pulled them down and off, exposing his twitching bulge.

Tavros nodded and couldn't help but giggle. He closed his knees together as he slowly slid his underwear off, his own tentacle like bulge twitching about and perking up. "Um, I...uhh..."

Gamzee leaned down and took Tavros' bulge between his lips, slowly running his tongue around the pointed tip as his hands caressed Tavros' hips and stomach. He gently gripped at the slight bulge of Tavros' stomach. "Yuh, yoo-ah geh'im biggah..." He struggled to say around the bone bulge in his mouth.

Tavros gasped and moaned as Gamzee took him into his mouth. He gulped and shook his head. "Nnn... N-no, it's your imagination. It's the food," he murmured under his breath, clawing at the sheets beneath them. He looked down at his stomach, which definitely had a...prominent bump over his abdomen. Was his thorax bursting?

Gamzee released the bulge from his mouth, kissing along the underside and going down to his nook. His rather long, pointed tongue licked over the slit before teasingly slipping inside, the thumb of one of his hands pressing in alongside it.

Tavros moaned loud, arching his back and trembling. "Hnng... Oh, G-Gamzeeee!" A small amount of chocolate colored genetic material leaked from the slit at the very tip of his tentabulge. By a small amount, it was about at least twenty-five milliliters.

Gamzee hurried to lap up as much of it as he could. He could be bursting at the seams and he would still feel like he hadn't had enough of Tavros' genetic material. He removed himself all together and crawled until he was on his hands and knees above Tavros, bulge dangling in Tavros' face. "Can you help a brother out?"

Gulping, Tavros nodded and shakily grasped at Gamzee's slick, indigo flushed tentacle appendage. It was slick and flushed brightly. He leaned up to kiss the wriggling tip, capturing it in his mouth. Gamzee was huge- forget the female to male ratio average and the hormones that often demanded come along with size- Gamzee defied it all.

Gamzee arched his back as Tavros took him in his mouth. "S...So good..." He leaned down and took Tavros in his mouth again, fingers going to play with the twitching seedflap as he bobbed his head along Tavros' writhing bulge, taking in most of him, but with the girth, it proved rather difficult.

Tavros mewled and moaned around Gamzee's thick bulge, shakily pushing his good hand up to rub at his matesprit's seedflap, which quivered and made odd squelching noises (much like his own was probably doing, embarrassingly enough).

Gamzee moaned, body shivering a bit as Tavros began to play with his seedflap. He could feel that it was dripping, and his bulge was leaking copious amounts of pre. He pulled away before any more could leak out. “Can I put it in, brother? I gotta fuckin put it in you all soon like.”

Tavros pulled off with a shiver and nodded shakily. "J-just be careful of my casts," he whispered, reaching down to spread his legs on his own. "D-do it," he murmured, looking to Gamzee with desperate yellow eyes.

Gamzee positioned himself between Tavros' legs, holding on to the undersides of his thighs as he inched closer, his bulge rubbing up against Tavros' nook and twisting against his matesprit's bulge before the tip finally found its way inside, plunging in almost the entire way.

Tavros yelped as he suddenly found his entire lower body  _filled_ with Gamzee's bulge. He cried out and tossed his head back, his horns knocking against the headboard. Oops. He reached down to spread his legs a little more, moaning loudly. "Ahh, G-Gamzee..."

"Sorry, brother, didn't mean to hurt ya..." Gamzee kept his movements to a minimum. He knew, or thought rather, that Tavros was a virgin, and he wanted to take it slow for him. His own seed flap was leaking profusely, the semi-clear indigo fluids dripping down his inner thighs. "Feels good...Tav..."

"Ahh, n-no, just...ohh...surprising..." Opaque brown liquid, diluted and partially transparent leaked out onto Gamzee's bulge. He hoped it would pass as blood, signifying his lost virginity... He couldn't lose what he'd already lost, of course, but he wanted Gamzee to think so. "Ahh, i-it feels so...weird..."

Gamzee lay down, embracing Tavros as he continued to roll his hips. "How's it feel? What's it feel like?" He kissed and sucked at Tavros' collarbone and neck, leaving dark brown hickeys behind.

"Ahh, i-it feels really full down there, and you're stretching me, ah- b-but it doesn't hurt..." He winced a little at how it wiggled and writhed within his nook, but other than that it didn't hurt to be stretched. Tavros moaned, his own bulge writhing and twitching. He grasped at the thick appendage, stroking it with his own hand.

 Suddenly, the juggalo got an idea. Gamzee sat up and twisted around, showing his leaking twitching nook. "Wanna enter me, brother?" He inserted a finger and spread it, beckoning Tavros' thick tentacular phallus.

Tavros nodded and smiled shyly, gripping his thick tentabulge and guiding it around Gamzee's own bulge and between his legs into his nook. He got it in, somewhat... His length was nothing to be proud of, but he was quite thick.

Gamzee trembled with pleasure as Tavros slipped inside him. He figured it would hurt more, seein as how he's never used his nook before. He shifted, nook stretched wide by the fat tentacle. "You're right...feels real fuckin weird, bro..." Gamzee's member writhed and twisted inside of Tavros, rubbing up against that bundle of nerves inside of him.

Tavros whimpered and bucked his hips, though he was unable to move too much without making his legs ache. "Ahhh..." Their bulges did most of the thrusting work on their own, letting them just relax and enjoy the touching.

Gamzee looked back over his shoulder at Tavros, face flushed dark purple as he grinned. "Tell me when you're gonna cum, brother...I wanna swallow every fuckin drop."

Tavros nodded, unsure of why Gamzee had such an affliction for his genetic material. It seemed so...odd...

Gamzee's bulge was starting to leak again. He could tell he was close, and readjusted himself, pulling up off Tavros, brown pre spilling out from his gaping nook. He settled himself back between Tavros' legs as he picked up his pace, rucking the bed with his frenzied thrusts.

Tavros cried out and arched his back, whimpering as he tried to hold in his orgasm. Gamzee wanted to lick it all up, right? Better to wait until he'd come and then let him do what he wished.

Gamzee exploded deep inside Tavros, making the smaller troll's stomach expand and distend, cups of his genetic material spilling out from his nook as Gamzee withdrew. He brought his face down to Tavros' bulge and gave it a long, hard suck.

Tavros had no qualms against holding back right then, crying out and moaning loudly, shuddering and filling Gamzee's mouth with genetic material

Gamzee really was addicted to his mate's genetic material. He swallowed down as much as he could, not wanting to waste a drop, but a good amount spilled out his mouth and down his chin.

Tavros shivered as he watched the chocolatey liquid drip down Gamzee's chin. He moaned as he spurted out a last little burst and finally calmed down. He whimpered as he felt all that genetic material gushing out of him and awkwardly closed his legs with his hands. "I-it feels so weird."

Gamzee pried Tavros' legs apart, watching his genetic material spill from his lover's nook. "But it's real fucking sexy." He grinned before leaning in to capture his matesprite's lips in his own, ignoring the fact that he was covered in the brown genetic material..

Tavros yelped as his sore legs were pulled apart, blushing and covering his face. "I-it's filthy..."

"But I like it~" He purred as he kept kissing Tavros.

Tavros felt a little...ashamed, for being used like _pail..._ But on the other hand, he also rather...enjoyed the feeling.

"I fuckin love you, brother." Gamzee muttered as he ran his hand through Tavros' mohawk, enjoying the romantic afterglow of their "first" time together.

Tavros smiled and kissed Gamzee's nose. "Ahh... G-Gamzee." His stomach suddenly flipped and he sat up immediately, leaning over and starting to puke off the side of his bed.

Gamzee was terribly confused and worried about what the hell had just happened. "Uhh....you okay brother?" Was it something he'd done? Was Tavros okay?

Tavros clutched at his stomach, whimpering. "Ahhh... Oh g-god..." His stomach churned and flipped. It just  _hurt..._

Gamzee was starting to freak out a little. What could he do? "Uhh...need to go the hospital or somethin?" He stroked Tavros' head comfortingly. He hated to see his matesprit hurting.

Tavros dry heaved for a couple moments and shook his head. "N-no...hnnng..." He whimpered and wiped at his mouth. "E-ew..."

Gamzee frowned. "Maybe Dave'll know what to do..." He didn't like having to go to that guy for help, but in this case Dave was more likely to know what to do, or Karkat even. Yeah, going to Karkat was the better option here.

"N-no, it's passed..." Tavros mumbled as he held his head and rubbed his temple. "Hng... O-okay, I'm good, is swear, I'm okay, Gamzee.:

"...You sure?" Gamzee didn't want Tavros lying to him. If he was feeling bad he wanted to know! But he was of the trusting sort so he just lay back down without another word, gently stroking Tavros' hair.

"Y-yes..." Tavros nodded and laid down, looking up at the ceiling awkwardly. "Hng... I j-just think...I dunno. I felt so sick for some reason, but...now I'm okay."

"Well, if you say so, cause what's a friend if they can't be all believin in each other." Gamzee smiled one of his lopsided smiles. "But we're all kinda a mess with the genetic material all over the fuckin bed."

Tavros blushed as he looked down at the puddle. "Y-yeah... Help me out so we can change the sheets. We're using buckets next time."

"Anything you say brother." Gamzee got up and helped Tavros change the sheets. While he had loved sex with Tav, cleaning up was a bitch.


	8. Blue Collar Psychopath

Tavros was going through his physical therapy, and was now getting around on crutches, thankfully. If he'd had to go through the house on that chair one more time he was going to kill someone! And probably himself, on accident... He was also getting rather worried about the sudden growth he'd had around his abdomen... It seemed to be...rounder. And when he patted it and touched it, he could feel it move and wiggle within him. He was worried.

Dave had also begun to stare at the growing bulge from time to time. It didn't look like Tavros was simply getting fat, as he hadn't really gained weight anywhere else, so there was only one thing Dave could assume, though he didn't really want to say it outright. "Uh...Tavros...How do I say this..."

Tavros looked up from where he was unbandging his hand, having finally been giving the orders to have the splints and cast off. It felt great to flex his fingers again, even if they were a little crooked. "Hunh?"

Alright. Screw tact. "Is it possible for male trolls to get pregnant? Cause you look like you are." Dave commented very matter-of-factly.

Tavros looked shocked and stammered out an attempted denial. But then he started to think. "...I-it's...w-well...b-before buckets I've heard...and the mother grub...and... Oh g-god..." He held his stomahc and trembled. He...he couldn't be... But it made sense. The puking, the wriggling feelings within him... 

Dave sighed, "Well, we've only started the second semester, I mean, I don't know how long your pregnancies last, but if they're like ours, you'll have it...them...whatever during the summer. Which I guess is better than having to drop out." Dave was a good friend, he really was, but sometimes he had all the tact of a brick to the face. Not that he wasn't able to be tactful, he just sometimes chose not to bother.

Tavros nodded and looked down at his stomach, awkwardly cradling it. He started to cry. He didn't know how to feel, he felt...he felt... He felt sick. He held in the bile, swallowing it down and wiping at his eyes. The grubs inside him had been conceived of his rape.

Now Dave felt like an ass. "H-Hey, it's okay, it's not the end of the world. You'll be fine." He hugged Tavros in the most bro-like manner he could manage.

"N-no, it's—it's not okay..." Tavros hiccuped and shook his head, covering his face, "th-they're Gamzee's, b-but they're not, they're not from our f-first...th-they're from  _that_ time..."

"...Oh. That's uh," Dave let go and awkwardly scratched the back of his head, "that's different..." He didn't really know how to console his moirail on the matter.

Tavros turned to bury his face into Dave's chest, crying and sobbing against him. He had to tell Gamzee... But he didn't know how he would be able to keep it a secret of  _how_ and  _when_ they were conceived...

Dave patted him on the back, running a soothing hand up and down his spine. "He needs to know, Tav."

Tavros shook his head desperately as he wiped at his tears. "N-no, it would h-hurt him so muh-much, I c-can't..." He sobbed harder and covered his face. "I j-just...I need to pr-pretend it happened in the last couple weeks."

"Tavros..." He wanted to tell him how impossible that was, but he couldn't bring himself to say it. "Want me there with you?"

Tavros nodded, feeling rather desperate. "Wh-when do I tell him?" When he got off work? But that was when Gamzee would be closer to being sober... He needed him to be in a completely sopored up state. He'd tell him at dinner when he'd eaten a couple pies.

"Probably after he's had his pie." Dave answered, seeming to read Tav's mind. "Well, I have to go to class, so I'll see you in a couple hours. You'll be okay, right?"

Tavros nodded and wiped his eyes. "I-I have some extra homework to do... I'll just work on that, and walking." He wasn't about to just stop his school or his physical therapy because of this news. He would just have to wait until Gamzee got home from work and sucked down a few pies.

Dinner than night was awkward. Dave was shooting looks over the table at Tavros while Gamzee was still preoccupied with his pie. He was trying to mouth a discreet 'tell him' without Gamzee taking notice.

Tavros shrank at the table, picking at his food during dinner. He felt sick. He knew that Dave was just trying to help... But... He waited until after dinner when they had all had their fill. He and Gamzee were sitting on the couch when he decided to say something. "Um, Gamzee?"

Gamzee rolled his head, completely fried on his sopor, almost to the point of blacking out. "Fuck's the matter, brother? You can't be all harborin up those mad wicked thoughts...lettin em fry in your think pan forever. Ya gotta serve em out so we can see what the fuck's for dinner!"

"N-no, Gamzee...um... I have something important to say to you." Tavros took a few deep breaths and reached out to take Gamzee's wrists. Should he just, like...make him feel the bump? He wasn't sure...

Gamzee leaned in so their faces were barely an inch apart, his eyes wide. He was silent a moment, just staring into Tavros' eyes. "Noo matter how fuckin hard I stare I still can't read your mind, brother."

Tavros couldn't help but laugh softly, and sighed as he took Gamzee's hands, pressing them to his stomach. "Y-you feel it?" he whispered, smiling sheepishly.

"Awwww, Tav, did you eat too much again, brother? You're all swolle'd up like a ballon n shit!" He gently squished Tavros' stomach, secretly hoping he would honk like a horn when you squished them.

Tavros squeaked and blushed. "N-no, Gamzee, I'm...I-I'm...grubs." He couldn't even get the 'p' word out.

Gamzee's eyes went wide with disbelief. "You've got motherfuckin  _grubs_ in there?" He looked down to Tavros' stomach, " _HHHooow?_ "

"W-well...um...well..." Tavros probably shouldn't have waited until Gamzee was  _this_ high... "R-remember when we...uh...buckets. But...not buckets? Th-that's what happened."

Gamze blinked for a moment before it finally all clicked together. "Those are  _my_ grubs? That's the motherfucking bitchiest bitch tits I ever fuckin bitched!" He stood up, obviously too excited to remain seated, and too excited to make complete sense when he spoke.

Tavros smiled softly and nodded. "Y-yeah, they're all yours." He looked up at his excited matesprit and prodded at his own stomach. "We made them together." Of course, he would have rather not made them... Not quite so soon. But hey, they could handle this. He could get Gamzee time off from work then they arrived and he still had school. They could all be a family.

Gamzee flopped on top of Tavros in a sort of hug. “Mmmm~ I fuckin love you...fuckin motherfucker fuck lovin...fuckin bitch tits Tav...” Gamzee soon passed out where he was draped over Tavros and the couch, quickly starting to snore.

Tavros yelped and sighed. "Um...Dave...?" He rolled Gamzee off and reached for his crutches. "Dave, I need help moving Gamzee up to our room..."

"Yeah, alright, alright." Dave picked Gamzee up bridal style and carted him off to Tavros' room, dropping him down onto the bed none too ceremoniously.

Tavros helped himself up to the room as well and sat down on the bed and looked at his moirail, then down at his stomach. He sighed and held his middle in his arms. He was scared... But he knew Gamzee would still be understanding and excited when he was more coherent.

Gamzee woke up the next morning feeling a bit crummy, knowing he had a hangover. He looked over at Tavros and wrapped an arm around him, humming a bit. His hand went to his matesprit's pudgy stomach. He hastily withdrew, falling clear off the bed when he felt Tavros' stomach wriggle. He peeked up over the edge of the bed, looking a bit like a curious cat. He watched Tavros' sleeping form, trying to figure out what in the hell he'd just felt.

Tavros didn't stir from where he lay, sighing softly and curling up as best he could. He was still only allowed to lay on his back, but he was comfortable, at least. He was a back sleeper anyway (horns refused to allow anything else). He didn't so much as flutter an eye as Gamzee inspected him in his sleep.

Gamzee crawled back up onto the bed and over Tavros, rand tentatively reaching out to touch Tavros' stomach again when he saw his skin twitch. He exclaimed, rather loudly, and fell off the bed again.

Tavros awoke this time and gasped, looking over at Gamzee. "...Gamzee?" He sat up and rubbed his stomach as he felt it twitch and gurgle. "What's wrong?"

Gamzee popped up, staring at Tavros with wide eyes as he pointed at the offending stomach. "You got a fuckin--your stomach just fuckin--I don't even fuckin know, brother, but it fuckin moved!" Gamzee got close to Tavros again. "Don't you worry brother, you're gonna be okay. We'll get it out, whatever the fuck it is..."

Tavros almost screamed as Gamzee got a weird look in his eyes, but just grabbed him. "Hey! I, uh, I already told you what happened. Yesterday, when you got h-high. But...um... I g-guess I'll tell you again." He took Gamzee's hands and put them on his bulging stomach bump. "I'm, um...h-having our grubs."

Gamzee blinked a couple times before looking away, a rather distant look coming over him. "Grubs? ...Oh...uhh...I don't know if I'm ready for grubs yet, brother..."

It pained Tavros to hear that. "W-well, it happened, alright?" He felt a little bitter, hearing that. "I-I'm not ready either, but...but..." How would they even go about solving this problem other than just giving birth and raising them? Was there another option?

"I didn't mean it like that, brother...I just...What if I black out again? Every time I fuckin black out, bad things happen." Gamzee looked down at Tavros' legs, a heavy weight of guilt resting on him.

Tavros sighed and nodded. "I-I'll make sure you always have pies," he said as he tugged Gamzee into his arms and started crying. He didn't know why he was crying, he just...was.

Gamzee wiped away every tear that fell down his lover's face. He didn't mean to always be upsetting Tavros like this, but it always seemed to happen. He was beginning to doubt whether or not he could be a good matesprit.

“J-just, be there for me, okay? Through this," Tavros whimpered as he buried his face into Gamzee's shoulder. He took a few deep breaths and shook his head. "I-I found out the other day... Dave knows."

Gamzee was irked that Dave had found out first, but he tried not to show it. "I'll motherfuckin be there with this miracle." Gamzee pressed a kiss to Tavros' lips. They'd make it through this...somehow...

Tavros managed a smile and gave Gamzee a squeeze. "I love you... B-but we need to use buckets from now on, even now, and especially after."

Gamzee pouted a bit, but he conceded. "I'll do whatever you say brother."

Before heading off to work, Gamzee sopored himself into a stupor. He could barely tell up from down. He was a good hour late by the time he finally managed to get to the grocery store, he found himself amidst a colorful array of wonderful smelling orbs. He plopped himself down right in the middle and began to eat whatever his hands could reach.

Whatever Gamzee's hands could reach happened to be the produce aisle. He was fired on the spot upon the manager realizing that his employee was under the influence. He gave Gamzee two hours to clean up.

"C'mon, you just gotta get yer chill on, brother." Gamzee patted the cantaloupes next to him as he looked up at his manager. "There's a fuckin perfect spot right here for ya." Gamzee grabbed a pineapple and took a bite straight out of it, not seeming to notice the spines in the least.

"FIRED!" the managed shouted, yanking Gamzee up and dragging him to the break room to get his things. "You can get your things and leave!"

Gamzee, in the back of his mind, knew that there was something terribly wrong with the idea of getting fired. "Naw, brother, I can' get fired...I got kids and a motherfuckin wife!" He'd seen that on TV once, figured it might work here.

"We don't need your kind here!" The manager went and got Gamzee's belongings himself, tossing them into his arms and stomping off. "You have five minutes to leave!"

Gamzee stared, looking scared and lost for a moment before his face broke out into a wide, malicious grin. "That's more than enough time." e launched forward and clamped his hand around his boss's throat, slamming him up against the wall, suspended a couple inches off the ground. "So you wanna fire me, huh? LIKE I'LL MOTHERFUCKING LET YOU!"

The manager flailed and kicked and someone luckily came to check on the racket. They yanked Gamzee off and tried to subdue him while the manager called their minimal security.

Gamzee lashed out, feeling blood splatter across his arm and a bit on his face. He got hold of a pair of scissors and stabbed one of his coworkers in the side. He would kill them all. He'd paint this motherfucking office with their blood.

Gamzee's shouting and the screaming of the coworkers was enough to draw attention, but not quite enough to get everyone assembled properly. A huge gap of time was left for there to be an escape.

Gamzee watched as the bodies writhed on the floor. He smeared his hand through the blood of humans and trolls alike, going up to the wall and drawing his signature smiley face, scrawling a message on the walls before he’d make his escape.

 

HoNk hOnK MoThErFuCkErS

:o)


	9. Papshooosh

Gamzee came bursting in through the door, eyes wild and make up almost completely smeared off. He was breathing hard as his body shook. He was sweating and his eyes were bloodshot and teary. He looked an absolute mess.

Tavros awoke with a startled cry and sat up. He looked over and gasped. "G-Gamzee?"

Gamzee’s face broke out into a shaky smile as he hurried over to Tavros and threw himself around his matesprite. "Safe...I'm safe...I'm safe I'm safe'm'safe'm'safe..." He mumbled as he cried against his lover.

Tavros gasped, but realized that as he shook in fear, Gamzee wasn't a danger to anyone right then. He was spooked and angry and distraught, but he wasn't going to hurt anyone. He wrapped his arms around Gamzee and tried to shush him. "It's okay, I'm here," he whispered, wondering if his papshooshing was at all any good as Karkat's. 

"Hmm..I'm safe...." Gamzee pulled away to reveal a one of his crazed smiles. "But I don't think YOU FUCKING WILL BE!" Gamzee's hands went to Tavros' throat, but his arms shook as Gamzee's sane side tried to fight against it. There was a deep pain in his eyes as he tried to overcome his monster. He pulled away and fell to the floor, writhing about in emotional agony as he tried to control himself.

Tavros screamed and recoiled away, but soon relaxed, though he kept his guard up. He stayed on the couch, a safe distance away from Gamzee, but reached out to grab Gamzee's hands, wanting to be there to hold some part of him in his inner turmoil.

Gamzee withdrew and punched Tavros in the face, so blinded was he that he didn't even realize who or what he'd hit. He picked up the lamp and threw it at the wall, shattering it. He picked up anything he could find, trying to smash everything to pieces. He picked up the coffee table, ready to bash Tavros over the head with it when Karkat and Dave threw open the door.

Tavros screamed and clutched at his nose, now bleeding. He curled up in a little ball, screaming again and trying to clutch his head to protect himself. Karkat shouted out to Gamzee and ran to him, grabbing him by the face and starting to papshoosh him to the extreme. 

Dave hurried and gathered Tavros up in his arms and took him to his room, shutting and locking the door as he tried to calm Tavros down as well. He knew he never should've let that fucking clown into his house.

"I-I'm okay," Tavros mumbled as he wiped his bleeding nose. He could feel it wasn't broken. "I'm okay, I'm okay," he murmured. "I'm okay, I swear, he was...he was okay f-for a sec..."

Dave grabbed one of the tissues Tavros kept by the bed, he wasn't about to ask what purpose they normally served, and plugged the troll's nose and wiped away the dark-colored blood.

"N-no, I- I'm just..." Tavros broke down into bigger, fatter tears. "I-I'm a horrible m-matesprite..." Well, he had been attempting something only Gamzee's moirail could do, but... He still felt like a failure.

"No you're not." Dave gently stroked Tavros' mohawk. "This isn't your fault in any way, shape or form, so don't let yourself think it is. It's his issue that he needs to get fucking checked out by a professional."

"H-he needs help, b-but I n-n-need..." He wanted to be able to help Gamzee on his own, but he knew he couldn't do it. He needed professional help.

"Then let's get him help. You're doing all you can just by loving him and putting up with him. The only thing you can do now is to continue supporting him. Don't feel so obligated to do more than you can." Dave kept wiping away the tears, turning his white sleeve a slight brownish color.

Tavros cried into Dave's shoulder, but unable to do more. He shivered and shook and trembled, wanting nothing more than to be more confident than ever and run down to hold his matesprite. He wanted so bad to grab Gamzee into his arms and keep him from slipping back into the capricious state of his.

Dave held him close and rocked him back and forth. This was all such a huge fucking mess. He only hoped that Karkat was having a better time with Gamzee, though he couldn’t be too sure.

"I'm sorry, this is all my fault," Tavros murmured as he tried to stop his tears, wiping his eyes and taking a few deep breaths.

"And I keep telling you it isn't." Patience, Dave, patience. What good would it do to get annoyed now? He kept doing his own papshoosh as best he could. There was a rage-loaded bellow from outside the room before it got papshooshed into submission again. Dave sighed again; this moirail thing was tiring.

Dave's papshooshing was actually very soothing. He could see why Karkat utilized it to its best abilities. He sighed and finally stopped his crying. He wiped his nose and took a few deep breaths. "I-I hope he calms back soon."

"Don't worry about him right now." Dave pulled back the blankets. "It's late, you should get some sleep. I'll stay in here tonight. Karkat and Gamzee can stay in my room." He put Tavros beneath the blankets and tucked him in.

"Alright, i-if you say so...um... Dave?" Tavros looked up at his moirail and reached over to clutch a pillow to his chest. "Wh-when I was younger and I was scared, Tinkerbull would let me hug him when I slept... Will you be my Tinkerbull tonight?"

Dave nodded, seeing just how much the troll truly needed him right then. "Sure. Just let me tell Karkat what's up."

That made Tavros quite a lot more happy. He smiled and relaxed, sighing as relaxed and cuddled up to his pillow for the moment. Karkat was busy shooshing Gamzee, finally getting him down to a state of docility.

"Karkat," Dave poked his head out, looking down at Karkat as he cradled Gamzee like an oversized baby, "I'm staying in here tonight. You and Gamzee can share my bed."

Karkat nodded and waved Dave off. He didn't want to risk Gamzee getting freaked out again or getting pissed off at Dave. He just papped him and shooshed him and cradled him in his arms and made sure he felt welcome and safe.

Dave nodded back and tucked himself back into the room, quietly closing and locking the door. "He seems okay. Calmed down a lot. He just looked like a scared kid to me." Dave flopped down in the bed, lying next to Tavros and pulling up the sheets.

Tavros nodded, feeling better upon hearing that. Tavros cuddled up to Dave and hugged him around the middle. He wanted to be safe for the night, and Dave was willing to give him that safety.

It was a little awkward with Tavros' horns, but Dave soon managed to get comfortable as Tavros held him throughout the night, the two of them sleeping peacefully.

Gamzee too, slept all curled up around Karkat, not letting him go until he awoke the next morning. When he finally did wake, Karkat was still sound asleep, and he was a little confused as to why he wasn't with Tavros, as most of the day before had been forgotten. He went to go into his and Tavros' room, but found the door locked.

Tavros was unaware of the locked door, having just assumed Dave had only closed it, and didn't even hear the jiggling doorknob in his sleep.

Gamzee frowned. Why was the door locked? It was never locked. He went outside and stood on his tiptoes as he looked through the window. He felt his irritation spike when he saw Tavros with his arms wrapped around Dave. He hit his head against the window before stomping away. He needed a pie; badly.

Tavros was rudely awakened when he heard something against the window. He sat up and looked over, frowning. He looked around for his crutches, groaning as he found they weren't there. Great... He managed to get up and use the wall and the bedside table to keep upright. That physical therapy was coming to use.

Dave slept on, exhausted from the night before. Plus, he hadn't slept that well anyhow with Tavros' horns knocking him in the night. He didn't even notice when his moirail disappeared.

Gamzee was in the kitchen, scarfing down a scalding hot pie. He glared at his reflection in the bottom of his pan, noticing that his makeup was completely gone.

Tavros eventually scooted himself over to the door and managed to trudge his way down to the kitchen, rather surprised when he found his door locked... He looked into the kitchen and found Gamzee in, watching him wolfing down a pie. He was holding tight to the wall and noticed one of his crutches, grabbing it and using it to help himself get around as he took a few steps into the kitchen. "G-Gamzee?"

Gamzee looked up at Tavros, pouting childishly before turning away, continuing to slurp down his pie.

Well, at least Gamzee seemed to be back to normal. Tavros limped in with the help of his crutch and the counter. "Gamzee, what's wrong?" he whispered, not wanting there to be any more drama.

Gamzee grumbled, slouching in his chair. “Is Dave your fuckin matesprite now or something?” He licked his pie plate clean before throwing it down on the table in a jealous huff.

"Hunh?" Oh... Gamzee must have seen them sleeping. "No, h-he's my moirail now..." Tavros sat beside Gamzee with a grunt, holding his aching legs. They were really hurting... "Don't think like that, okay? I love you." He reached out and promptly lost his balance and flopped on top of Gamzee's lap with a yelp.

“You alright there, brother?” Gamzee lifted Tavros up so he was sitting sideways in his lap. “Ya gotta be careful cause of your legs bein all broken n shit.” He suddenly remembered that he was still supposed to be jealous. “I love you, but I don’t like that you’re with Dave.” He pouted again, looking away.

Tavros got comfortable and promptly smacked a kiss on Gamzee's nose. "He's just my moirail, okay? He said he would help me with my problems and make sure I was alright... You're my matesprite." He kissed Gamzee again and nuzzled him, their horns bonking together awkwardly.

Gamzee smiled, he could never stay mad at his adorable little matesprite. He kissed Tavros and started gently stroked his thigh. “I fucking love you, brother. Don’t know what I’d do with myself without you.”

"I love you too, Gamzee." Tavros curled up in Gamzee's lap, sighing softly. "Mmm..." He whimpered softly and held his bulging stomach. "Ah...they're moving."

Gamzee reached out and put his hands on Tavros' stomach. "Woah, that's really fuckin weird!" He ran his hands over the swell, chuckling a bit. He was finally getting used to the idea of being a father.

"Y-yeah... It really is weird," Tavros murmured as he rubbed his stomach. The grubs weren't prodding and bulging from his stomach beyond the bump, but he could feel them wriggling, and it was so  _weird_.

"How many are inside there?" He poked at Tavros' stomach, as if he was trying to count them with touch alone.

"I-I don't know... But y'know, um... They usually come in pairs." That meant each of them with a descendent. It made Tavros shiver.

"So there's like a little you n a little me in there!" He tickled Tavros stomach. "They're gonna be fuckin adorable!"

Tavros giggled and nodded. "Yeah, I guess so!" He cupped his stomach and nodded. He squealed at how Gamzee tickled him, giggling and kissing him happily. He wanted to be like this in their relationship forever.

“Haha, you’re fuckin adorable, brother.” Gamzee cooed as he kept tickling and kissing his matesprite.

Dave and Karkat were creeping around the corner, both keeping a careful watch over their moirail carefully. The two withdrew, satisfied that things were back to normal. “I think they’ll be okay.” Dave went to sit on the couch, pulling out his laptop.

"When did that fuckass get pregnant?" Karkat muttered, rubbing his chin. That was the second one of his friends. Were they all just some fertile as fuck bastards or was this just something weird, or a coincidence?

“Around the time he was hospitalized we’re guessing. Why?” Dave didn’t see how this had any relevance.

"Equius said that's when he got the goddamn parasites too," Karkat mused aloud. He huffed and glanced over at Gamzee. No, he wouldn't... He loved Tavros. It must be a coincidence. "Must be Eridan being desperate again, and we all know Equius can't say no. Whatever, it's a coincidence."

"Are you sure about that? You sure it's just a coincidence?" Dave wasn't one to rule out options right away. "What if he was sober. He wouldn't know he was doing it, much less remember. It could also explain why he disappeared that night, cause Gamzee was there that first night Tavros was in the hospital."

"It's a coincidence," Karkat snapped. He didn't want to believe that Gamzee would do something like that to his matesprite, so he was turning his head from the implications. "Let them have their fucking moment." No need to ruin it.

"It's not like I'd bring it up with them. I'm just speculating." Dave sighed, "Why don't you ask that creepy perv yourself."

"Not my fucking business who stuck their bonebulge in his nook," Karkat snapped, looking disgusted. The thought was there, though... Ugh, it hurt his thinkpan. "Whatever, who cares. If Equius really cares he can do something stupid like go find the father or something."

Dave looked up at Karkat with a cocked eyebrow. "You know, if Gamzee really is the father, and he comes around here, that could be a real mess."

"Then let it be a real mess." He was going to fucking talk to Equius about it. He would. Equius was not fucking allowed to fuck up Tavros' and Gamzee's relationship. "I'll deal with it."

"Yeah, have fun with that. I'm keeping out of that one." Dave got to work on his newest sbahj, slipping on his headphones and turning up a mix he'd put together a few days ago.

Karkat sighed and took a peek back at their little lovey-dovey couple. They seemed so happy. He really hoped Gamzee hadn't done anything stupid enough to ruin the relationship.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who has read our fic. Every hit, kudo, comment, bookmark, and subscription means a lot <3


	10. Indigo Handprints

Gamzee had come to in an alley, hidden from view. His arms were smeared with candy-red, teal, and yellow-green blood. He brought his hands up in front of his face, eyes going wide as his face scrunched up in panic. Indigo tears began to stream down his face as he freaked out. He needed Karkat. He needed his moirail, _now._ He took off through the streets once again, desperately trying to reach his friend.

Karkat was on the phone with Equius, getting some rather disturbing news. "Well, who the fuck did it to you? ...Are you fucking kidding me? ...Oh whatever, I'll find out later..." He hung up and flopped onto his couch with a sigh. He wasn't getting any sleep that night...

Gamzee was clawing at the door, crying out to his moirail as he felt bits of his sanity start to slip away from him. He'd killed before, he knew he had, but what frightened him most was that he never remembered it, and that he'd almost done to Tavros what he'd presumably done to whoever it was whose blood he was stained with. "Karkat! Brother! Let me the fuck in, man!"

Karkat jumped in surprise and groaned, getting up to open the door. "What the fuck do you—oh my fucking jegus get the fuck in here!" Karkat yanked Gamzee inside, already beginning to shake with anger. "What the fuck do you think you're doing walking around the streets like that you dipshit!? When was the last time you had a pie!?"

Gamzee was shaking, absolutely terrified of himself and by what happened. "It up n slipped straight outta my thinkpan. Thoughts all up n pickin up dirt from the floor!" Fat, dark purple tears were starting to make his makeup run as they streamed down his face. "I'm so motherfuckin scared, Karkat..."

"Okay, fuck, fuck... Just sit here." Gamzee was sat down and Karkat ran to get a wet cloth, cleaning all the blood from his face—smearing his makeup in the process—and wiping off his hands and getting his clothes, somewhat... He'd need to clean them properly, but for the most part, he got all the blood off.

Gamzee just sat there as Karkat took care of him, sniffling a bit as he got himself back under control. “I blacked out again, brother. I can’t remember a fuckin thing...”

Karkat didn't see any brown on Gamzee... So he didn't suspect anything happened to Tavros. "Where were you just now?"

"I think I was at work, or some shit...I got hungry...then I remember gettin real scared n the after that, nothin." Gamzee brought his knees up to his chest.

Karkat cursed and sighed, wiping Gamzee's face and sitting beside him, yanking him into his arms. "Hey, hey, listen, fuckface, all that matters are your fuckin friends, alright? Now let's just wait for this to blow over. You'll stay with me."

Gamzee nods a bit. He didn’t want to confess what had happened to Tavros, so he didn’t bother calling him up and just curled up on Karkat’s couch, withdrawing into the inner recesses of his crazed mind.

Karkat spent most of his time papping and shooshing his moirail, stroking his hair and comforting him in his lap, doing his best to keep the monster from coming out. He knew Gamzee's matesprite must worried sick, especially since he had looked at the news on his phone. It had already made the front page.

_’You can use all the motherfuckin drugs you like. You’ll never keep me away. HONK HONK, MY MOTHERFUCKIN BROTHER!’_

Gamzee was clawing at his face as he battled with his inner demon, feeling that monster inside of him try and take him over again. He shivered and shook in Karkat’s arms, his own blood starting to trail down his face.

Karkat hurried the urgency of his papping and his shooshing and stroked him face, wiping away the blood and smearing the makeup further. "Shhhh, shhhhhh," he hushed, trying so hard to keep Gamzee on his level. "You're better than that," he whispered, a rare feat, "you can beat it."

“I wan’ the fucker out!” Gamzee held onto his moirail as he cried, his tears were something almost as rare as Karkat whispering. “I wan’im out I wan’im out I wan’im out I wan’im out I WANT HIM THE FUCK OUT!” He sobbed, burying his face into Karkat.

"Shhhh, shhhhhhh," Karkat shooshed, unable to do anything other than shoosh and pap his moirail. He was crying tears of diluted candy red himself, but unable to truly calm himself down to be able to do the same for his moirail.

Gamzee was eventually able to calm down, able to finally feel the warmth of Karkat's embrace as he was able to restore himself to his sanity, away from that cold darkness. He remained quiet though, simply wanting to remain within those comforting arms.

Even after Gamzee was settled down, more or less, Karkat continued to papshoosh him and hold him tight. It was more for his comfort than Gamzee's at this point.

"Gamzee lifted his head away from Karkat's chest. He sniffled a bit, wiping his nose and face, surprised to see his blood on his hand. He looked back up in the direction of an odd beeping sound. "Hey, brother...I think your phone's ringin..."

Karkat sighed and took up his phone. "WHAT?" he shouted, probably louder than he should have. "Oh... Yeah, he's here. No, I don't fucking think it's a good time." He held the phone away briefly. "It's your fucking Matesprite." He went back to the phone. "Yeah. No. Fuck no. No, fuck off, you don't want to see him right now."

Gamzee's eyes opened a little wider. He reached out a tentative hand, "Can I talk to 'im?" He looked like a scared child that'd just woken up from a bad nightmare right about then.

Karkat weighed the options heavily before he spoke into the phone, "he wants to talk to you. Here." He handed off the phone and sigh, waiting for the words to start. He was so worried... He worried for their relationship; he worried for Gamzee; he worried about Tavros' safety...

Gamzee took the phone and pressed it to his ear. "Hello?" He spoke into the phone, voice weak and warbled as he sniffled a few more times, never leaving Karkat's lap.

"G-Gamzee? Um, I-I really want you to come home," Tavros whispered as he turned away from Dave. He had spent a lot of time talking Dave out of kicking Gamzee out of the house from the news they'd watched. "I-I was watching the news and...and I'm scared..."

Gamzee really tried not to cry again, as crying really wasn't in his nature, but he couldn't help it. It was understandable that Tavros was scared, but he still didn't even know what he'd done. "I'm fuckin sorry. brother...but I can't help it! I don't even know what the fuck I did..."

"D-Dave wants to kick you out," Tavros blubbered as he held his stomach and cried. "I-I'm trying to talk him out of it... I n-need you home, right now, please," he begged.

Gamzee didn't want to go home to Tavros. He was scared of what might happen if he did. He couldn't even bring up the words and just dropped the phone from his hands, curling up against Karkat again.

Karkat took the phone and told Tavros to kindly fuck off. It was for his own good. He hung up and proceeded to go back to shooshing Gamzee, dropping the paps every now and then, but mostly shooshing. He promised it would be okay, that they just needed to let it blow over. He knew the police would be looking for Gamzee, but he figured if he stayed out of sight for at least a year he'd be alright...right?

\--

Dave was sitting beside a terribly upset Tavros. They had been watching TV when the broadcast had gone out that there had been a multiple homicide. Just seeing the scrawling on the wall and they knew who it was immediately.

Tavros was crying and wiping at his tears, having a total breakdown. He was so worried about Gamzee, guilt shame and horror were all totally overwhelming him. "D-Dave, I'm scared," he cried.

No matter how badly Dave wanted to use this as his chance to finally be rid of that useless, dangerous juggalo asshole, he couldn't do that to Tavros. He took the troll in his arms and did his best to comfort him, running a hand up and down his back as his moirail sobbed, not saying anything.

Tavros was more scared that Gamzee would be taken away from him than anything else. He took a few deep breaths and wiped the tears away. Now was not a time to be crying, now was a time to be goddamn confident in himself. He got up to his feet with the help of his crutches. "I-I'm going to see him, he's at Karkat's dorm, I just... I need to."

"No. You can't. Not right now. You're both not in the best places right now, and I think you need to spend some time apart. At least until things have calmed down a little and he’s no longer on the news." Dave stood up, grabbing his keys and wallet. "I'll go see how he's doing. You stay put. For his and your own good."

"B-but I need to see him," Tavros whimpered as he was sat down. He trembled, very scared. "D-don't get into a fight, please!"

Dave ruffled Tavros' Mohawk gently, bumping their foreheads together. "I'll be good, I promise." He let go and turned to head out the door.

Tavros nodded and curled up on the couch, trying not to worry. He was just so scared for Gamzee...

Gamzee practically startled out of his skin when there was a knock on the door. He was seriously afraid that someone was here to take him in for murder. He clung on to Karkat like a security blanket, as if the smaller troll could protect him.

"Just a sec," Karkat muttered, shooshing Gamzee softly and pulling away. He looked through the peephole and sighed. "It's just that fucknuts, Dave." He opened up the door just a crack "What the fuck do you want, asswipe?"

"Shut up. I came here to see how he's doing." Dave pushed past Karkat and looked around for Gamzee, but the juggalo had hidden long before the door had been opened. "Shit, where'd he go?"

"Fuck! You scared him off!" Karkat exclaimed as he went searching for the other. "Gamzee! Fuckass, get out here!"

"It's not like I tried to." Dave had never pegged Gamzee as one to really "get scared" or anything remotely close. He sat down and ran a hand under his shades and over his eyes.

Gamzee was gone, the window was open and there was a handprint in indigo blood on the sill.

"Fuck! He got out- I was actually getting him calmed down! This whole fiasco is going to have him stressed and scared and he's going to be a fucking menace until he gets some help!" Karkat shouted angrily, "we need to find him!"

"Alright, I've got my car with me. Where do you think he went?" Dave hurried out the door, maintaining his cool aura even as he panicked a bit on the inside.

"I'm not sure, fuck... Come on!" Karkat grabbed Dave by he shirt and yanked him towards the stairs, not bothering with his door. "Maybe he went back to the store... We check there first, and then we check your place, he might have gone to see Tavros!"

"I'd feel a lot better if we checked my place first. I don't feel comfortable with having Tavros there alone with that lunatic." Dave grabbed Karkats hand and removed it from his shirt and let him pull him by the hand. Mostly because he didn't want his shirt to get all stretched out.

Karkat nodded. "Whatever, we just need to fucking find him!" Dave made sense, though... "Dammit, I hope nothing bad happens...”


	11. Love Me, Hate Me

Equius was, for lack of a better term, a touch frightened. He was standing on the stoop of the highblood's house with his hands on his swollen stomach. He could feel the young grubs shifting around in his stomach and it made him flush that he was carrying the highblood's offspring. However, it was shameful that a lowly blueblood held the honor. He rang the bell, better now than never.

Gamzee was on edge. He had calmed down considerably. He'd talked with Tavros, he'd been papshooshed for hours, he'd eaten a couple pies... The high was starting to wear off now, but he was waiting for his pie to bake when he heard the doorbell. He probably shouldn't answer... Tavros was asleep in bed, and Dave was out. Should he answer the door? He decided to check who it was.

The juggalo was relieved to find it was one of their friends and opened up the door. "What's up, motherfucker?" he asked with a dopey smile on his face. Even if he was starting to lose his high, just seeing his friend there coming to see him—or Tavros? Or Dave? Whatever—made him feel a lot better.

“Highblood, I must demand— I must respectfully request that you refrain from using such foul language...if you please, sir...” Equius awkwardly adjusted his glasses, wincing as they shattered more under his unintentionally strong grip. “Uhm, I have something very important to discuss with you. Would it be presumptuous of me to enter your home?”

"Nah, motherfucker, come on in! It's great you're here to talk with me, brother, I always thought you'd be a great motherfucker to hang with," Gamzee said as he swept the door open wider to let Equius in. "Come on in."

“Well, you see, I’m not here to simply hang, as you put it. I actually have something of great importance that I need to discuss with you.” Equius sat down, hands going to his swollen stomach. “As you may or may not have noticed, I’m...I’m carrying grubs...” He looked away, face flushing blue.

"Really? Wow, motherfucker, that's some great news!" Gamzee replied with a grin as he plopped down himself. "Ya know, brother, Tavbro's got my grubs in 'im. I'm gonna be the best motherfuckin' dad there can be!" The juggalo was practically beaming with pride. "Where'd ya get yours?"

Equius almost looked offended. How could the highblood choose someone with such tainted blood over him? The very thought was—! Well it was actually somewhat...delightfully dirty in his perverted mind, but this was not the point here! “Er...well, highblood...” He put his hands to his stomach with simultaneous repulsion and affection, “...these are yours as well...”

There was silence and Gamzee's eyes went rather wide as he heard this news. When had anything happened between them. Oh god, had it been when he'd blacked out...? He began to shake with the thought that he had cheated on his matesprit... Unless their feelings had been black? "Were we all bein' caliginous 'n shit?"

Equius was beginning to sweat, “Oh, you were most abusive. Using me as a bucket as you put me in my place.” He was getting horny all over again at the thought, shamelessly wishing it could happen again.

That wasn't...as bad. "So...what're we all doin' about this?" Gamzee asked as he looked down at his lap. He was getting rather scared. What if Equius wanted to be his matesprit? He had Tavros; he couldn't dare betray him like that.

Equius got down on his knees before Gamzee. “I would just like for the grubs to know whose genetics they share...and...” He put one gloved hand on Gamzee’s knee, “...and if you could abuse me...continue to put me in my place...”

Gamzee shakily slapped at Equius' hands as he jumped up to his feet. "Unless we're bein' all kismesis and black an' shit I can't do anything, brother... I got Tavbro to worry about, he's got our grubs in 'im and..." He could feel that nagging voice in the back of his head...telling him to  _get rid of the problem..._

Equius quickly nodded his head, not wanting to miss the chance to have Gamzee fill one of his quadrants. "Yes, please, hate me for the detestable blueblood that I am!"

Gamzee wasn't sure if he could be black, though... Not with Equius. He shook his head and started to back away. "N-nah, brother... I can't be hatin' on you," he said breathlessly, breathing heavier. His hands were twitching and that voice was taking him over, faster, hearing that Equius wanted him as a romance.

“But you were able to hate me so wonderfully before!” Equius grabbed for Gamzee desperately, “I do not want to be hated by anyone other than you! Please, I implore you, highblood, please take me as your kismesis!”

Gamzee shoved Equius away. "N-no, brother, I was motherfuckin' sober out of my mind, I can't." He couldn't hate Equius like that when he was sopored up and high, like he  _should_ be, and he wasn't about to spend time sober with Equius. That was just a bad idea, and he couldn't be around Tavros like that. He was getting even more spooked and he was starting to slip into a sober-like state.

“Then just take me, one last time, and I’ll leave you alone, if that is your wish, highblood...” Equius was on his knees again, holding onto Gamzee’s hips. “Please, treat me like a bucket one last time.”

That was the last straw for Gamzee's barely sopor state. He reached for the nearest long, thin and bendable object, which happened to be some shitty bow that Dave had around the house for some reason. He dove down at Equius and pressed the bow to his throat. "You want to be a motherfucking pail, brother? I'LL MAKE SURE YOUR CORPSE IS ONE!"

Equius’ instincts told him to fight back, but he could never raise a hand against Gamzee. He knew he could easily overpower him...but he just couldn’t bring himself to do it. He fell back, hands going to protect his grubs. “Highblood! Please! Your grubs! Please don’t kill your grubs!”

"I don't have no motherfucking grubs!" Gamzee shouted as he snapped the bow in half and promptly wrapped the bowstring around Equius' throat. "YOU SAY HI TO THOSE MOTHERFUCKER'S IN THE STORE FOR ME!"

Equius tried to claw at the string that was embedded in the skin of his throat. He could feel his pulse in every inch of his body as the string around his neck tightened, cutting off his air and the blood to his brain. He could feel his grubs writhing in distress, as if aware that their mother was dying. Equius’ face turned blue and his eyes began to roll back as his heart beat for the very last time. His body fell limp, blood seeping out from his eyes and ears. His body gave a final massive convulsion and several grub shells fell out of the legs of Equius’ shorts.

Gamzee continued to strangle Equius, regardless of the fact that he was already obviously dead. Meanwhile Tavros had heard the confusion and was coming out of his room with his crutches. He screamed as he saw Gamzee strangling Equius, and glanced down with horror as he saw grub shells beside Equius' feet. "G-Gamzee?"

Gamzee whirled around when he saw Tavros. His face split into a grin, baring every one of his fangs. “Have you come to join...THIS MOTHERFUCKIN PARTY?” Gamzee let go of the bow, letting Equius’ body fall with it. He stepped forward, crushing a thankfully empty shell. He reached over and grabbed the poker from the fireplace. “You’re a little late, but that doesn’t mean...YOU CAN’T JOIN IN THE MOTHERFUCKIN FUN! Welcome to the dark carnival, motherfucker.”

Tavros screamed and backed away. Oh god, Gamzee had killed one of their friends... Not just some random person, a  _friend._ He started hobbling away towards the stairs of the apartment. He needed to get the fuck out of there.

“I DON’T MOTHERFUCKIN THINK SO!” Gamzee swung out, hitting Tavros in the lower back, smiling with delight at the sickening crack he heard upon contact. He watched, chuckling a bit as Tavros rolled down the stairs. “Just like a slinky...THAT’S FUCKIN HILARIOUS!”

Tavros blacked out upon cracking his head on one of the stairs, crying and blinded by tears as he looked up briefly and saw Gamzee cackling over him. His stomach twisted and he was ore worried about the grubs within him than anything else... He descended into the darkness quickly, unable to feel himself from below the waist.

Gamzee stopped in his laughing briefly as he took a whiff of the air. His pie! It was starting to burn! He hurried back inside, noticing Equius with distaste. He picked him up by the hair and tossed him out the nearest window he could find, watching for a moment as the body plummeted. He had to contain his snickers as it startled a passerby when it hit the cold cement. He hurried back to his pie, pulling it out of the oven and quickly slurping it down, ignoring the burning of his mouth, throat, and stomach. He stood in the kitchen a moment as he waited for it to hit. When it did, he broke out in his characteristic lazy grin. “Now that’s the motherfuckin bitch’s tits...”

Gamzee stepped back outside the kitchen, looking down at the floor and seeing a bunch of broken grub shells and four barely wriggling grubs. They were premature, but they’d live. He scooped them up in his arms. “T-Tavros?” Oh god, ohgodohgodohgod what if he’d done something again? He ran out the door and looked down the stairs, eyes landing upon his dead matesprit. His face contorted with the agony of a broken heart before he clutched the grubs close to him and ran out of the house. He promised himself he’d keep these grubs safe. They were all he had left of his beloved matesprit.

Tavros was completely motionless, a little bruised up on the face, but otherwise his face was devoid of damage. Unfortunately, the rest of his body was not quite so lucky. His spine was twisted at an awkward angle and one of his legs was definitely re-broken. He was going to need a lot of bandages to fix himself.

Dave came home about an hour later. He panicked when he saw Tavros and called an ambulance right away. As he climbed into the back of the ambulance, he dialed Karkat, letting him know what was up.

Karkat practically ran to the hospital. When he got there Tavros was undergoing examinations and they brought him into a surgery. He decided to sit and wait with Dave outside. "Fuck... I should have stayed."

“We can’t just sit and stare at them all day to make sure nothing happens.” He sighed as he ruffled his hair with frustration. “Shit...fuckin second time this’s happened...”

Karkat curled up beside Dave. "I should have stayed with him. He said he was fine, he said he would be okay... But I should have stayed." In Karkat's mind, this was all too much fucking his fault...

Dave looked over at Karkat. He knew how he felt. He felt like he’d failed Tavros, like he’d been unable to protect him like he should’ve. He patted Karkat’s hair. “Well, you can’t worry so much about what you should’ve done, just what you can still do. I mean fuck, you can’t ride around on his shoulders all day just to wipe his nose every time he sneezes.”

Karkat was about to say something else, but the doctor came out of the surgery room and came to speak with them. They informed them that Tavros would be fine...but that his grubs had been lost and he would be paralyzed for the rest of his life. It made Karkat choke up.

Dave felt his heart momentarily stop. Tavros would be heartbroken to hear this. "Is he awake?" He didn't want Tavros to find out form a doctor; he wanted to be there for him when he found out. He looked over at Karkat, who didn't seem to be holding his shit together none too well either.

"He won't be awake for a couple more hours. He'll be moved into his own room and you can see him," the doctor told him, "would you like to tell him when he wakes up? It might be better for him to hear from friends." Karkat was shaking and trying not to cry. He'd been unable to protect his friend. He was barely holding himself together.

"Yeah. Can you leave us alone for a bit?" Dave put a hand on Karkat's shoulder, slowly rubbing back and forth. He waited until the doctor was gone before pulling Karkat into his lap and hugging him, burying his face in Karkat's hair. "This really fuckin sucks."

Karkat gladly clutched at Dave, hugging him tight and nodded as he started to cry diluted red tears. "F-fuck, I fucking...fucking Gamzee...I'm going to kill him."

Dave placed his chin on top of Karkat’s head. “Not if I slice off his fucking juggalo head first.” His glasses had fallen off when he’d buried his face in Karkat’s hair, his bright red eyes were rimmed with tears for his moirail. “Shit, I can’t believe I’m fuckin crying...”

Karkat didn't respond, only sobbed, choking on his own emotions. He wanted to see Tavros now. He had to. He scrambled to get up to his feet and saw as they were transporting Tavros out of the surgery room. He walked alongside the gurney and plonked right beside his bed in a chair when it was done.

Dave wasn't far behind, staying near his moirail every step of the way. He gently stroked the blood caked mohawk, having replaced his glasses. It was easier with them on. Life felt a little less real that way.

Karkat stayed close to his friend as he slept. He knew they weren't as close as he was to other friends... But dammit, he loved all their friends, and Tavros was one of them. He stopped his crying. He had to stay strong for them.

"I'm gonna stay here tonight. Are you?" He settled down in the only chair in the room, a cheap hospital recliner, laying back a bit. "It's already past midnight, you know?"

"I think I'm...going to go try and find Gamzee," Karkat murmured as he got to his feet. "...Hey, make sure he knows what happens and he's comfortable, alright? Make sure he takes it well."

Dave sat up and patted Karkat on the head. “Be careful, okay? I don’t want to be coming here to visit you too.”

"Don't worry, I'll sort him out," Karkat promised as he punched Dave halfheartedly. A small attempt to make sure he was alright. He looked to Tavros and nodded. "I'll make sure it's alright. ...F-fuck you, Strider, I hate you." He promptly shoved Dave away and ran out the door after confessing his feelings.

Dave sighed, knowing Karkat meant well. He looked over at Tavros, a frown creasing his brow. "Tavros...what the fuck happened to you..."

Tavros didn't awake until a few hours later, gasping as he opened his eyes. He sat up with a dazed look and eyes wide. He gripped at his legs and his waist and started crying. He couldn't feel his lower half.

Dave was asleep in the chair beside him. He'd been awake until a little more than an hour ago, but it was already 4 in the morning, he had to sleep sometime.

Tavros looked over to see Dave and reached over to rouse him from his sleep. "Dave? D-Dave, please..."

Dave woke from his sleep with a start. "Hm? Huh?" He looked around, a tad disoriented. "Oh, Tavros, you're awake. How are you feeling?"

"D-Dave," Tavros whispered, rather distraught and horrified. "Wh-what happened, I can't feel my legs..."

"...The impact to your spine damaged your spinal cord. It...it paralyzed you from the waist down." He looked away, balling up and tightening his fists. "And your grubs...the fall...they didn't make it." Dave looked up at his moirail going up to him and stroking his hair. "Tav, I'm so sorry...I'm so sorry..."

Tavros burst into tears as he heard that. He clutched at his stomach and trembled violently. He sobbed and hugged himself desperately to try and keep form breaking down completely. Why did he have to lose the grubs? He could have handled being paralyzed... It would have hurt him and made him cry, and he would have cried regardless... But the grubs too?

Dave leaned over the bed and embraced Tavros. "Tav, I'm sorry. I failed you as a moirail. I couldn't protect you. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." He rocked him back and forth, trying to let the smaller troll he was there.

Tavros sobbed and cried into Dave's shoulder. What had happened? Had he tripped and fell down the stairs...? Had he fallen? What had happened? "D-Dave, I d-don't rem-member... H-how did I...what did I do? T-to do this?"

Dave was seriously struggling with this. How could he tell Tavros that Gamzee had done it all. Well, he'd presumed Gamzee had done it, as there was no one else really to suspect. Not to mention Equius' dead body outside their house. He didn't think Tavros could handle knowing right now.

"D-did I fall?" Tavros could never forgive himself if it was him alone who had done this. He would sob and cry and feel empty and broken.

"No, this wasn't your fault." Dave wiped away the tears as they fell. "It was that fucking juggalo. He attacked you again. There was a pie pan at the top of the stairs. So he's probably high now. Karkat's out looking for him."

Hearing that it had been Gamzee made Tavros cry harder. Gamzee had done this to him? He couldn't believe it... He cried and whimpered and sobbed against Dave. All confidence he could have possibly wanted to have or tried to have had disappeared from him.

"Shh, shhh, you know he doesn't mean it...He was just sober. We'll get him help, don't worry, it'll be okay. You know he wouldn't do it unless he was sober." Dave rocked him back and forth as he stroked his hair and down his back. "He loves you, he just wasn't thinking straight...You know better than anyone that he isn't himself when he's sober."

Tavros nodded and blubbered as he clutched at Dave. "I-I thought..." He thought Gamzee would at least be able to hold back from something like  _this._ Apparently he'd overestimated his matesprit's abilities. He trembled and yanked Dave closer. "I-I'm scared...I can't feel my legs and I'm scared."

“Everything will be okay. I’m sure Gamzee’s just as scared as you. Karkat will get him the help he needs.” He yawned, completely exhausted, “You need to sleep, Tav.”

"O-okay." Tavros just let Dave go and tried to be comfortable. He tried so desperately to move his legs...but he couldn't. He cried and punched one of his legs, hard, in a desperate attempt to try and feel something. He ended up just upsetting himself further.

Dave took Tavros' hands to keep him from hurting himself. He lay down next to him, wanting to offer him the comfort of his close proximity.

Tavros blubbered and gladly hugged Dave long into the night. He just hurt all over, if not just from his head. He cried himself to sleep and shook with terror and horror all night.


	12. You'll Be Better in No Time

Gamzee climbed in through Karkat's dorm window, four barely breathing grubs in his arms. He called out to his moirail, but he wasn't there. He curled up on Karkat's bed, curling up around the grubs. Even if Tavros was gone, he still had their grubs. "Don't worry lil bros...I'll be the best motherfuckin dad ever."

Karkat was returning from his search, sending a text to Dave about his lack of results. He figured he should just head back to the dorm before he went to see Tavros again. It was better that he get some sleep before he went to visit. Besides, Dave had it handled... Karkat unlocked the door and closed it behind him, kicking off his shoes and going to find his bed. He gasped as he found Gamzee in his bed. "GAMZEE!?"

Gamzee sat up in bed a small, crazed smile breaking out on his face. It was obvious he hadn’t slept since the incident. “L-Look, Karkat.” He held up the four little grubs, one of them unmoving. “I saved them,” he laughed breathily, no humor in it—he’d cracked, “I...I think I killed Tavros...but I saved our grubs! See?” He held them out for Karkat to see.

"Hunh...?" Karkat shakily approached and reached out to touch Gamzee. "Hey...hey, hey, Gamzee. He's not dead. And...those aren't Tavros' grubs." He gulped. He knew whose those belonged to. "Hey, come on..." One of them wasn't moving, but it looked like at least a couple were still alive...

“No...these are our grubs...I saved them...I did good. I ain’t no fuckin bad guy...I saved our grubs.” One of the grubs, a little blue-blooded boy, let out a little whine and Gamzee leaned in to gently nuzzle it.

Karkat hesitantly took a seat beside Gamzee. "No, you're not a bad guy..." Just fucked up in the head. Woe to the grubs who inherited Gamzee's blood. It was a curse. "But hey...hey, listen to me." He grabbed Gamzee's face. "Tavros isn't dead."

"Tav...Tav isn't..he..." The eerie smile on his face broke and twisted up into a mask of agony, tears rolling down his face. His brain was so muddled he didn't know what to do other than bawl. "But...but I...I hurt him...and...but, the grubs...who's...aren't they mine?"

"Yeah, yeah, you hurt him," Karkat murmured, pulling Gamzee's head against his chest. "They're Equius'. They're yours too, but those aren't Tavros'." He stroked Gamzee's disheveled and wavy hair, trying to calm him. "Tavros isn't dead. He's hurt, but he's at the hospital. He's waiting for you, I bet."

“He dun’ wanna see me,” Gamzee choked, “all I fuckin do is lay the hurt on ‘im. I can’t be ‘is matesprit when I keep fuckin him up ‘n shit!” He let go of the little wrigglers and held onto Karkat for all he was worth. “It ain’ fuckin fair!”

"I know, I know you do," Karkat soothed, trying to papshoosh his moirail into submission. "You're not a bad man, Gamzee... It's him. I know you're a good person on the inside. It's him we need to get rid of." That capricious son of a bitch... It was Gamzee's self of who he would have been without sopor.

Gamzee clung to Karkat, shaking with silent sobs, his attention only ever diverting when he heard one of the grubs emit a weak wail. He picked up one grub, a little purple-blooded boy, and watched in horror as it died in his hands. "Th-They're dying...Karkat! They're dying! I can't let them die!" He held the last two to his chest and curled up around them. "...Help me..." He sobbed, the words almost unintelligible through his quivering lip.

Karkat's heart nearly broke as he saw Gamzee crying and sobbing. "Hey, come on, bring them," he said as he got to his feet. "Let's go to the hospital- they can survive there, alright? There'll be no questions asked and you'll be able to see Tavros, if you want.". He wanted their little family put back together.

Gamzee nodded weakly. He was terrified of confronting Tavros with all he'd done. "Tav'll wanna see our grubs..." In his mind, he was still convinced that the grubs in his arms were his and Tavros' spawn. It was the thread that held together his sanity at that moment.

"Yeah...yeah, he will." Karkat nodded and pulled Gamzee to his feet, leading him down and onto a bus to get them to the hospital. He was so worried about Gamzee… Nothing could help him if he went on another rampage. He decided not to think about it and just get those grubs a place to be safe.

Gamzee never took his eyes off their round little faces. Their breathing was ragged and their faces were flushed with their dark blue and violet blood. "You'll be okay, you're my little mothergrubbers, yes you are." Gamzee cooed as he kept a careful watch on them, making sure they were both still breathing.

Karkat didn't think that Gamzee would make a bad father. If he could only get his sober side under control, he'd be great. But he had the nagging feeling that it just wouldn't be best for the grubs to grow up with Gamzee and Tavros. He would say something later. For now they just got up to the hospital and had the grubs checked in quickly.

Gamzee didn't want to let them go, but he knew that if they didn't get help then they'd definitely die like the other two had. He walked solemly behind Karkat, afraid of going to see Tavros and what his matesprit would say to him.

"Let's jut take a seat." Karkat urged Gamzee to sit on one of the benches and started papshooshing him automatically, more for his own comfort than Gamzee's. "They're alright, now, the hospital is taking care of them." How would they explain where their birthing troll had gone? Oh well not important right then. Later. "They're gonna be okay, the hospital knows what to do with premature grubs."

Gamzee nodded, mind a million miles away. It wasn't that he was thinking deep thoughts, but his brain was so exhausted from its ordeal that it had almost completely switched off, letting Gamzee zone out completely.

Karkat let Gamzee space out. He ended up falling asleep, leaving Gamzee to do what he could for the rest of the night.

Gamzee zoned back in probably about an hour later when an orderly asked him what his buisness there was. Gamzee, to the best of his ability, told the man who they were there to see and why, without incriminating himself. The man was kind enough to help them find Tavros' room, Gamzee carrying his moirail on his back all the way there. He pushed the door open and tentatively stepped inside. "Tavbro?"

Tavros was barely awake, but he did manage to open his eyes. "G-Gamzee?" he whispered, shakily rubbing at his tear stained cheeks. He had been wanting to see Gamzee all night... And now that he could, he wasn't sure if he wanted to. What should he say?

Gamzee put Karkat down on the chair on top of a sleeping Dave, who grunted a bit, but didn't seem to mind otherwise. He kept his distance, shuffling his feet sheepishly. He had no idea where to begin. "Uh...hey, brother..."

"Sh-shut up and come over here," Tavros demanded, holding out his arms. He was still distraught about his legs and being paralyzed, but that would damn well wait. For now he would be with his matesprite and dammit he would enjoy himself.

Gamzee smiled shakily, happy beyond belief that Tavros still wanted him. He ran to him, embracing his matesprite for all he was worth. "You're alive! Motherfucker, you're really alive!"

Tavros started to cry too as he nodded and pulled Gamzee down with him. "I-I can't walk anymore," he whispered through his tears, blubbering softly. He also touched his stomach with a whimper. "A-and I lost them, Gamzee..."

Gamzee's eyes went wide before they fell. "I'm real fuckin sorry, brother... Real motherfuckin sorry...I'm the worst fuckin matesprite ever..." His eyes lit up again when he remembered, "But I saved our grubs! Our grubs are okay! I saved them, I'm not—I'm not bad..." Tears were rolling down his face as he tried to keep his smile. "I'm not bad..."

Tavros' eyes went slightly wide. "Really?" He had only been told he'd lost the grubs... Had Gamzee been able to save them? "No, no, you're not bad..." He cradled Gamzee's head in his arms and held him close. "Wh-when can I see them?"

"Fuck, I don't know brother...they weren't doin too good, n too of 'em up n died on me." He frowned a bit, "I'm real sorry Tav...I ain't gonna do something this fucked up ever again, I fuckin swear to you!"

"Just come into bed with me," Tavros whispered, rather heartbroken to hear that some had already been lost. He shouldn't get his hopes up. He moved his legs with his hands and pulled up the thin blanket, smiling to Gamzee. "Please?"

Gamzee smiled and crawled in, curling up beside Tavros and throwing an arm around him. "I love you, brother. You're the best fuckin matesprite a guy could have."

Tavros smiled and gladly cuddled up with Gamzee as best he could. He couldn't feel his entire lower body and it hurt to know that he could probably never enjoy /that/ sort of thing with Gamzee again... They'd have to wait and see.

Gamzee noticed the bruises on Tavros' neck and a frown made its way back onto his face. He leaned in and gently laid a kiss to every bruise he saw.

Tavros gasped with every kiss, trembling the first time, but soon relaxing. Gamzee was so sweet. He threw his arms around the other troll and smacked a kiss on his face. "Your makeup's all smeared," he murmured.

Gamzee pouted, "I don't have it with me so I can't fix it up or nothin. I hate it when it fuckin gets all smeared up..." He wiped at his face self-consciously.

"It's alright, just leave it for now, okay? You can ask Karkat or Dave to go get it for you," Tavros murmured as he rested his head against Gamzee’s chest and started to drift off to sleep once more. "Mmm..."

Gamzee held Tavros close. He looked over the battered body and felt a weight on his chest. He just couldn't let this happen again, he loved Tavros too much. He had to do something.

Karkat was just now waking up, yawning as he looked over, flinching as he saw Gamzee cuddling up with Tavros. He was worried but it looked like everything was okay. He turned around in Dave's lap and flailed as he realized he was...well...in Dave's lap. He promptly flopped on the ground.

As Karkat flopped, he managed to kick Dave square in the groin, effectively waking up the disgruntled, and now rather agitated, student. “Ahh mother—shhhit man! That fuckin...jeeesus!” Dave curled up in the chair, voice strained from the pain. “What the fuck hap—” Dave looked down at who was sprawled on the floor, “Of course...shoulda known.”

Karkat groaned and sat up with a harsh glare. He looked up at Tavros and Gamzee and sat up. "Gamzee, what's going on?" he demanded, wanting a status update.

Gamzee looked over at Tavros with tired, hollow eyes. “I can’t keep fuckin him all up...I gotta get my shit together, so that’s what I’m gonna do.” He looked back down at Tavros, face sullen, completely devoid of his typical jollity.

Karkat frowned as he sat up and got up to his feet. "What are you going to do, Gamzee?" It didn't sound very good... He was worried Gamzee would do something uncalled for.

“It’s like you always say, brother.” He held Tavros close, inhaling his scent before turning back towards Karkat, “I need some fuckin help...”

"Gamzee, what are you going to do?" Karkat asked as he circled around the bed to Gamzee's side. "Tell me right now- if nothing else. Just fucking tell me, and I won't stop you. Maybe."

“I gotta turn myself in, brother...” Gamzee held onto Tavros tighter, making the smaller troll wince uncomfortably in his sleep. “Before I really fuckin kill him good n dead like, but for real instead of when I was all thinking I did.”

Karkat opened his mouth to protest vehemently... But he realized Gamzee was right. "You just need help," he told him, reaching out to grab Gamzee's shoulder. "So...don't go to the police station. Go to a hospital, go anywhere other than the police, alright?"

Gamzee nodded, looking anywhere but Karkat’s face.

“You know, I think that’s the first sensible thing I’ve ever heard you say.” Dave remarked from where he sat.

Gamzee looked at Dave, but he couldn’t argue against it. He reluctantly agreed that there was a truth to what he said. “I just don’t wanna leave ‘im. Or our grubs...”

Karkat sighed and reached out to take Gamzee's hand. "He'll visit you," he said, knowing there was definitely truth in it. If Gamzee was in a mental hospital then he could have pills, he could be drugged up, or at the very least stable. That way Tavros and their grubs... 'Their' grubs, could come see Gamzee without fear.

Gamzee nodded. He was sure he'd be out and cured in no time, a month tops. Sadly, his expectations weren't the least bit realistic, not that he'd realize until much later. He looked down at Tavros and kissed him on the forehead. "I'll go tomorrow, right after I have one of my pies."

"Yeah...you stay with him for tonight," Karkat murmured as he pulled back. Better for them to have one last night together. It would be cruel otherwise.

Gamzee wrapped both his arms around Tavros as he closed his eyes, falling asleep almost instantly.

Dave watched silently, not feeling it was really his place to say anything. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes as well. Yes, this would be for the best.


	13. The Help We Need

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm no longer editing the chapters mostly because i just want this posted and out of the way. if anyone notices any serious issues with the following chapters, please let me know and I'll go back and fix it - PD

In the morning Karkat was still awake, sipping at a cup of coffee and curling up next to Dave. He wished that Gamzee was able to control himself a little better... If only, then they wouldn't be in this mess. Maybe they'd be able to fix everything soon enough.

Dave slowly stirred from his seat, noticing immediately that he had a Karkat in his lap. He sighed, shifting as he tried to get the kinks out of his back. He let out a yawn, "Morning."

Karkat yawned and leaned against the human. "Yeah...morning. Hey, Strider," he muttered as he set the cup of coffee away and cuddled up against him. "You think what he's doing is right?"

"...What, you mean getting help? Why would that be a bad thing?" Dave didn't get how it could be anything other than a good thing.

"I'uhnno, Strider. He might not be able to take it, being locked up," Karkat muttered under his breath, "he's not that type. He's a good guy and all, but I highly fucking doubt that he can really manage himself like that well enough. Relies too much on moronic 'miracles'."

"...But he's dangerous. He's killed people, Karkat, and he almost killed Tavros more than once." Dave reasoned, "I know he may not _like_ it, but it's not about liking it. It's about getting him help."

"Not saying he shouldn't be locked up," Karkat sighed, "just thinking that hell, he's not gonna do so good all drugged up. He can be sopored and he can be high... But he's probably not going to do well just...tranquilized."

"Well, we won't know for sure. I'm sure they've met crazier people than Gamzee. If we get him to a good place, even if it’s hard at first, he'll wind up better. Hell, he might not even need sopor or anything when he gets out, you never know." Dave shrugged. "But he can't not go."

"I know, I know, he's gotta go. I just...I want him to at least be as much himself when he's high on sopor as when he's drugged on prescription meds." He wanted Gamzee to stay the same old jolly juggalo that he always was when he was high, at the very least.

Dave patted Karkat's head gently, "He'll be okay. I know you're worried, but he'll be fine. So stop worrying. What if Tavros hears; he still doesn't know."

"Yeah... Best to let him find out later, he's got enough on his plate," Karkat mumbled as he reached for his coffee again. "Let's just hope Gamzee has the heart to leave before he wakes up."

"We'll just have to wait and see." Dave took Karkat's coffee and took a swallow before handing it back. "Should we wake him up?"

"Yeah, that'd be best..." Karkat got up to his feet and circled around to shake Gamzee by his shoulder. "Hey... Hey, Gamzee. Fuckface. Wake up, please?"

Gamzee blinked his eyes open, looking around a little confused by his surroundings until it finally clicked. "Wassup, brother?"

"Morning. Gamzee...it's time for you to go, alright?" Karkat murmured as he held Gamzee's shoulders. "We should get you to a mental hospital."

Gamzee frowned, looking down at Tavros. His eyes got watery, but he didn't cry. He kissed his sleeping matesprite, pecking his lips a few times before slowly worming out from under him. He got up out of the bed and bumped their foreheads together. "I fuckin love you brother...take good care of our grubs..."

Karkat didn't want to shed any tears. He turned around, grumbling slightly and heading for the door, only turning around to make sure Gamzee would follow. It would really hurt Tavros to know that Gamzee was gone. ...But it was for everyone's good.

Dave turned away. This was their moment, and he didn't want to intrude.

Gamzee only let one tear fall from his eyes, landing on Tavros' cheek and running down his face. He pressed a last, lingering kiss to his lips and stroked his hair. He pulled away as slowly as he could, not wanting to leave, but knowing it would be for the best. He followed Karkat out without another word.

"It'll be good for both of you," Karkat assured him with a couple papshooshes and started to lead him away. As they went to the front desk to ask where the nearest mental health hospital was, another lady behind the desk recognized Gamzee from the description on the news and quickly called the police quietly.

After the lady behind the desk had assured them that someone was on the way, Gamzee and Karkat took a seat. Gamzee was shifting nervously. He didn't want to get locked up, even if he knew it was best for him. He just hoped the whole thing wouldn't be too terrible, and that Tavros and the grubs would come see him.

A few minutes later, armed police came in, guns drawn and aiming at Gamzee. "Hands above your head! Get your hands where we can see 'em!"

Karkat screamed out and cursed in surprise, letting his hands shoot up immediately. The policemen grabbed Gamzee and tackled him to the ground, not wanting to risk injury. They quickly handcuffed him and yanked him up to his feet.

Needless to say, Gamzee freaked out. His pupils dilated and his face pulled back into a snarl. "If you know what's good for you...YOU'LL LET THE FUCK GO!" Gamzee reared his head back, horn gouging out one of the officers' eyes. He wrenched himself away, trying to make a break for it. A gun went off and Gamzee fell to the ground, body twitching as indigo blood began to pool on the floor.

"GAMZEE!" Karkat shrieked as he jumped up to his feet, but held back by one officer. He screamed and shouted, crying already. They had been so close... Why? Why now of all times? Luckily it didn't look like Gamzee was in too much danger... From the shot wound it didn't look fatal, but still... To see his moirail shot down like that. And he'd been unable to help...

Two of the officers hauled Gamzee up onto his feet, the one who'd done the shooting was getting scolded by the lieutenant. Gamzee rolled his head to look up at Karkat as he was hauled off, face devoid of emotion, eyes startlingly empty. "I'm..." he rasped, "I'm fucked, ain't I?" He coughed, a bit of blood trickling down his chin. "'m sorry, brother...Sorry you got such a fuckin bad moirail."

"Let's go! Get this murdering son of a bitch outta here!" Gamzee was hauled off through the doors and thrown into the back of an ambulance, getting tied down to the gurney, wrists and ankles cuffed to the gurney.

Karkat screamed and shouted, trying to push to get to his moirail, only to be shoved aside. He was tossed down to the ground, crying tears of diluted red. He could do nothing other than get up to his feet and watch as the ambulance drove away with his moirail inside. He ran back to get to Dave to tell him what was happening, unable to stop his sobs and the tears sliding down his gray cheeks.

"Hey, hey, calm down. I can't understand you when you're like this." Dave wiped away the tears as they fell. "Let's go into the hallway. Tavros is still sleeping."

"Th-they took him, they took him," Karkat cried, gripping Dave's shirt by the sleeves and slumping against him as he cried.

Dave furrowed his brow, "Wasn't that the plan? He was supposed to go to the hospital. I mean...I get that can be rough, but he had to go."

"N-no, the fucking police, someone called the cops, they shot him and took him!" Karkat shouted, voice raising in his histerical fit.

"Sh!" Dave clamped a hand over Karkat's mouth. "Do you know what that'll do to Tavros if he hears you!" He lowered his voice to a whisper, so that even if Tavros was awake, he couldn't hear. "It's bad enough that he's already disillusioned to think teh grubs are his, he doesn't need to know that his lover was shot and carried off in handcuffs."

"Wh-what?" Tavros had awoken at the crying and shouting, eyes wide as he heard Karkat. "Wh-what's wrong? What happened to Gamzee?" He sat up and tried to move, wincing as he realized he wouldn't even twitch the lower half of his body.

Karkat cursed and turned away. He couldn't face his friend like this.

Dave went over to Tavros and brought him to his chest. "We'll talk about it later, alright? Right now, you need to rest." Dave looked over at Karkat, jerking his head in a silent demand to go out into the hall.

 

Karkat gladly fled the scene out into the hall, and Tavros grabbed onto to Dave. He was already crying. "D-Dave, please, what's going on? Something bad happened to Gamzee? Who took him away?"

"He's going to a hospital." Well, probably, what with that shot wound and everything. "He's getting help so he won't hurt anyone anymore."

"B-but, _this_ is a hospital!" Tavros exclaimed, clutching to Dave and crying harder. "I want him here- why are they taking him away?" Besides the whole killing people thing.

"No, Tav, a mental hospital. He needs help, dude. He can't continue on as he is. He's a danger to others, to himself, us, and now that you guys have grubs...He's doing this for you."

Tavros wiped at his eyes and nodded. "I-I understand," he whispered, unable to get any more out. It was better this way. He'd...he'd go visit Gamzee, if he could.

"Good." He ruffled Tavros' hair. "I'm gonna go talk to Karkat, alright? You gonna be okay for a minute?"

Tavros nodded again and leaned back with a sigh, taking a few deep breaths. Outside, Karkat was pacing. He was over his tears and now just angry; very angry.

Dave slowly opened the door and stepped through, closing it behind him. He leaned up against it and sighed, folding his arms and crossing his legs.

"Fuck... He's going to go to fucking jail if he doesn't get to the mental hospital- they're probably telling him he has to spend the night in jail- he needs his fucking pies, oh god..." Karkat had moved on from angry to worried in a millisecond.

"Look, right now, he'll get treated for the gunshot wound. He'll probably get analyzed for any sort of psychosis, which they'll undoubtedly uncover. We can go and speak on his behalf, but I'm worried about those grubs too. The people here don't even know who they belong to."

"Fuck, the grubs..." Karkat groaned. "We should go there now and tell them that they belong to Tavros." Might as well make it official- Tavros thought they were his anyway. Equius was dead, and they were Gamzee's too...

Dave nodded, turning and heading down the hallway, looking for signs that would lead them to the maternity ward. At least, that was where he figured they were. It made the most sense.

"This way," Karkat muttered, yanking Dave along until they got to the maternity ward, looking in on all the grubs and babies alike. He pointed to the two side by side. "That's them."

Dave looked through the glass down at the two grubs inside some fancy incubation machine. "Well shit there they are... They're kinda gross looking."

"Yeah, I fucking know, Strider, shut the fuck up," Karkat muttered as he looked in on the grubs. He sighed and hailed down a nurse to get them the papers for the grubs. "Shit, we gotta name em..." Well, Tavros could always change their names later if he really wanted.

"I wanna name the boy Greg. He looks like a Greg. Or Phil." Dave wasn't too sure about what to call the little girl grub. Or at least, he thought it was a girl, he couldn't quite tell.

“That's not how it fuCKING WORKS DUMBASS!" Karkat shouted, but promptly told to shush up by a nurse. He got the papers and looked down at them. He sighed, looking over at the girl. "How about we call her Cerene." Yes. Cerene Hauska.

"What, naming a kid? You just...give it a name, don't you?" How else was naming a child supposed to work? Freaking aliens and their freaking customs. "So, what's the rule? I wanna name one."

"Six letters for both names," Karkat muttered as he scribbled down the name of the girl in Alternian and then in English. "You can name the boy, I guess..."

Dave stared at the boy, trying to think of something ironic that only the masters of irony would be able to appreciate. "Mmmm...Magnam Fortis." It sounded like a condom brand or a pornstar name. Naming a child after a condom? Priceless. Genius, in Dave's mind.

Karkat made a face. No way Tavros would keep that name. Ugh, whatever. He wrote it down anyway, if it would please Dave. "There we go," he mumbled as he then wrote down the name of their guardian- Tavros Nitram.

"You think Tav'll mind that we named his kids for him? Even though they aren't really his..." Dave leaned back against the glass, folding his arms across his chest.

"He can change them if he really wants... Don't think he even got around to thinking about names," Karkat sighed as he looked in on the grubs. He handed the papers over to the nurse again who went to take them to place in front of the grubs and write down who they belonged to. "It's easy to change them."

Dave looked back at the tiny grubs as they slept. "A part of me feels like they're mine...cause I named it. Or ours I guess since we both named them." Dave stood up again and began to walk down the hall.

"Well, odds are we'll have to spend a lot of time around them." Karkat shrugged off the comment, but couldn't deny how much it made him flush. "N-not that I care, I hate grubs. I mean- I'd kill em. That's what we adult trolls do. We kill younger trolls."

"I won't let you do that. If you touch one hair on those grubs, I'll hate you for the rest of my god damned life." Dave thought about that for a second, "And not in the good way."

Ugh, apparently Dave didn't see through his facade. ...Was that good? He really wasn't sure at this point. "Whatever... Hmph."

Dave smirked, "You're not gonna get me to hate you that easily." He walked on ahead, long legs leaving Karkat behind.

"Hey, fuck you, Strider!" Karkat ran after the other, still feeling queasy from what had happened, but definitely better. He sighed as he followed after the coolkid. "When Tavros wakes up let's take him to see the grubs."

"Alright, fine, sounds good." Dave and Karkat went back to Tavros' room without much else to be said between them. Dave slowly entered, not wanting to wake Tavros if he was asleep.

Tavros awoke later in the morning, sighing and sitting up. "Dave?" he croaked as he rubbed his crusty eyes. "Dave, are you awake?" he asked softly, taking a few deep breaths as he looked down at his legs. He felt pitiful.

Dave and Karkat were napping in the chair, neither one of them having had a full night's sleep, plus, that morning had been stressful as hell. "Oh, hey, you're awake. On a scale from shitty as fuck to somewhat okay, how are you feeling?"

"Uhh...somewhere in the middle," Tavros admitted with a sigh. "I mean, all the places I think that should be hurting I can't feel anyway."

"I see." Dave really didn't know what else to say about it, so he figured changing subjects would be best. "Wanna go see your grubs now that you're awake?"

That seemed to perk Tavros up a bit. "Um, you really think so? I'd love to... Do they have names yet? Did Gamzee name them?"

Dave had to hide the pang of hurt that threatened to flash across his face. "...Yeah...yeah he did." Dave felt terrible for lying to Tavros again. It felt like all they were feeding this kid these days were lies.

Tavros smiled weakly and nodded. "Can, um, you get someone to help me out of bed? They said I could move around the hospital a little to get used to a wheelchair if I was up to it..."

"Screw that, I'll do it myself." Dave leaned in and scooped Tavros up out of bed. Stumbling a bit as he worked on getting his moirail into his new chair.

Tavros yelped and held onto Dave as he was transported. "O-okay! Um, don't you think we should tell them I'm going somewhere?" he asked as he awkwardly moved his limp legs into the stirrups.

"Well, Karkat'll be here. He'll figure something out." Dave smirked at the thought of a flustered Karkat getting incredibly pissed off at him for leaving without notice.

Nodding, Tavros placed his hands on the wheels and gave them a testing spin, back and forth. "Alright, I think I have this..." He rolled himself forward. It was a little awkward at first, especially getting out the door, but he got the hang of it, more or less.

"You sure you're okay? Want me to push you?" Dave offered, walking slightly behind Tavros as the troll worked with his new chair. It'd been a while since he'd been confined to one, and now it'd be permanent.

"No, I want to do this myself," Tavros replied with a firm nod. "I better get used to it now." Besides, he didn't want to be pushed around, literally and figuratively. He was going to conquer this chair. He rolled himself down the hallway and looked around. "Where do we go?"

"Left." Dave headed on ahead so he could lead the way. If Tavros wanted to do this by himself, then he had no right to try and take that away from him.

Tavros gladly followed after Dave, parking in front of the big window to look in on the many grubs and babies. It was a little difficult for him to see, but he managed. "Which ones are mine?" he asked, looking around to find a blood colour he could match.

"Those two." Dave pointed to a little blue-blooded boy and a little girl with dark purple blood. In reality, there was no way that those grubs could have even appeared to have been related to Tavros.

Tavros was a little surprised, and almost...worried as he saw that neither of the grubs had even a trace of his own blood color in them. "Neither of them have my color." It was rather disheartening. But it looked like one was close to Gamzee's...

"Well, according to Karkat, there were four, but two of them died before they made it to the hospital." It was the truth. Now, however Tavros took that to mean was up to him. Dave felt terrible, having to weave this web of lives for Tavros. He had to keep reminding himself that they were for his benefit.

"Oh..." That was even more disheartening. "Well, at least I still have these ones..." He smiled and looked in at them wriggling and squirming in under their blankets. "I hope I do good by them..."

"I'm sure you'll make a great mom...dad...whatever you trolls have...caretaker things. Plus me n Karkat plan on helping you out whenever we can." And Dave fully intended to keep that promise.

"Custodians," Tavros corrected, smiling and nodding as he looked down. "What are their names?" he asked, wanting to know what he should call them.

"The girl's name is Cerene Hauska and the boy's name is uh..." He had to keep himself from cracking a smirk, "...it's Magnam Fortis. Dude's got the dopest name any grub could hope for."

Tavros laughed and nodded, looking over the grubs. He wondered when he'd be able to hold them. "Are they alright to hold yet or are they still too fragile?"

Dave had to be careful how to answer that. "Well, how long was it until you were due?"

"I'm not sure... I think just a month, or a few weeks... A little more, maybe," he murmured, shaking his head. "I'm not sure."

"Yeah, so they're a bit premature. Think the nurse said they need to stay in there for a week or so. Or until they're stable or some shit." Dave had been tempted to make a joke about the grubs having Gamzee's blood and stability being impossible, but it would've been in really bad form to do such a thing at a time like this. A few months ago, maybe, but definitely not now. "Want me to go ask if you can hold them?"

"No, it'll be better for them to stay in there," Tavros murmured, sighing and shaking his head. "I can wait. Just being able to see them helps already," he murmured as he smiled over to the grubs. They looked so innocent and sweet. "They look so sweet..."

Dave smiled, "They look kinda gross, but I guess their faces are kinda cute...maybe..." Dave teased, wanting to see that fanged smile Tavros had gone so long without.

Tavros did manage a smile, nodding to Dave. "They're cute to me, all over." He put his gray hand on the glass and took a few deep breaths. He was going to do damn right by those grubs. They deserved a good life.

Dave smiled, a light chuckle bubbling up. "Well, I actually have to get going soon. You wanna stay here or you want me to walk back with you?"

"You go ahead, I want to actually stay here and watch them for a bit," Tavros whispered as he set his arms on the windowsill and rested his head in them, looking over the grubs inside the room.

The little boy blinked his large eyes open for the first time, wriggling a bit as he took in the bright surroundings. He rolled his eyes to look up and saw Tavros staring in at him and his sister. He tilted his head a bit in curiosity before shutting his eyes, falling back asleep.

The girl was a lot less restless than her brother, but did occasionally wriggle in her sleep. It made Tavros smile. He smiled and kissed the glass. Soon enough he'd be able to hold them. He couldn't wait... He sighed and leaned back in his chair. He really hoped things got sorted out with Gamzee too. He needed to see them.

\--

Meanwhile, Gamzee was handcuffed and in a holding cell at the police station, staring out at the men in uniforms, a touch frightened. He didn't know what was going on or what he'd done to warrant this. "Hey, Mr. officer dude..."

"Shut up! You'll get your chance to talk with the detectives. Just sit your ass down and keep your trap shut!"

"Well...'m sorry if I'm all up n botherin you n shit. I'll just sit down and shut my shit up then." Gamzee sat back down on the floor, looking down between his crossed legs at the floor.

Gamzee was shot up with painkillers, which would thankfully keep him high, and a couple detectives came in, tossing a file on the table. "You've got some real big balls, walking around like nothing happened after you murdered three people."

Gamzee blinked, "What? No, brother, I didn't kill him! I only pushed him down the stairs! I ain't killed no body! I fuckin swear to you!" Gamzee had been moved to the interrogation room and was strapped down so he couldn't move an inch.

The two detectives looked at one another. Gamzee was already a nut in their heads. The troll shook his head and crossed his arms. "We're talking about the two people you killed, and one injured, at your previous place of work- and then that blue blood we found strangled outside your house."

Gamzee's eyes went wide. When had he ever gone to work? He couldn't remember. "But I ain't never worked a motherfuckin day in my life! Well, I had a job I was supposed to go to n all, but I ain't never up and went." Then, his slow moving brain finally processed the accusation of the blue-blooded murder. "Wait, you mean Equius? That motherfucker's dead? N-Naw, man, He can't be dead!" The look the detectives gave him implied otherwise. "Shit he had grubs n everything...What happened to his grubs?"

Gamzee looked sincere with his words... But the detectives had more than enough evidence to put Gamzee away for life. And a skinny ass juggalo in prison was nothing to be looking forward too. "We have to speak with our prosecutor. You're off your rocker, you crazy ass clown. You're gonna be put away for a long time." With that, both detectives began to exit.

"Wait, please!" Gamzee implored, but he was ignored, obviously. "I'm...I'm not crazy...I'm not..." He looked down, body starting to shake as he felt his other half acting up beneath the surface.

The detectives and a couple officers were looking in through the one way mirror. "The fucks he doing, crying?"

The prosecutor in question frowned, shaking her head. Redglare wasn't very sympathetic. The boy had killed four people. "Send him to the holding cell, you read him his rights, he hasn't requested a defense lawyer. Let's get his hearing set up."

Gamzee's head was still lowered as he shook, begging his monster not to come out now. He couldn't black out now! If only Karkat was there, he'd be able to help him. Though at this point he didn't feel like he even deserved a moirail.

Redglare looked into the room with a sigh, taking off her glasses and polishing them. She tapped the window and nodded. "Get him out of there, he needs some sleep." And with that, she sauntered off. She had a case to make.

The second one of the guards reached down to untie him, Gamzee turned and bit down into the officer's arm, drawing yellow-green blood.

"Ah, fuck! He just bit me!"

"Get that Dolorosa lady, the psychiatrist. This bastard's a crazy motherfucker."

Gamzee just smiled one of his wicked smiles, cruel thoughts swimming around in his brain. "You motherfuckers don't stand one motherfucking chance against me. I'LL KILL ALL YOU MOTHERFUCKERS AND BATHE IN YOUR TAINTED MOTHERFUCKING BLOOD."

Gamzee was left alone for a moment, until a tall, slender troll woman came through the door and took a seat in front of the juggalo clown. She looked soft and kind, very slight, as if she would bend with the slightest breeze. But the light in her eyes told another story she was not weak. "Gamzee Makara?"

"WHAT DO YOU WANT...you fucking lowblood..." Gamzee was shaking as he spoke. His mouth said one thing while his eyes cried desperately for help.

"Gamzee, do you happen to have any romances? Any Red romances?" the jade green blood asked as she laid her hands in her lap. "If you'd like you may call me Dolarosa. I rather detest being called a lowblood. My blood is most definitely rarer than yours."

"THAT'S NONE OF YOUR--fucking--BuSiNeSs!" Gamzee thrashed around in the chair until he fell over and onto the floor, knocking his head. "Woaaah...shit, man...how the hell'd I wind up down here!"

 

The troll woman sighed and got up to her feet, circling around and yanking Gamzee's chair upright. "Gamzee, would you please tell me about your romances?" He was a capricious little troll boy, she'd give him that...

"Hm? Who're you?" Gamzee didn't even see her enter the room. Maybe she'd come in while he'd been on the floor

"I'd like you to answer the question," Dolarosa pressed, trying to get further with him. "You can call me Dolarosa."

"Oh, right, shit, sorry Dol'rosa." Gamzee beamed at a chance to talk about tavros, even if it was to a stranger. "Yeah, I got the best fuckin matesprite in the world. He's the cutest motherfucker you ever laid your fuckin peepers on." He grinned one of his lopsided grins. "An I got the best motherfuckin moirail too, sister! He's an angry lil fella, but he's fuckin amazing."

Dolarosa nodded, watching Gamzee rattle on. "You seem like a very sweet child. Do you ever...black out? Have episodes where you don't remember anything?"

"Yeah! You gotta be really fuckin smart to know all that without me up n tellin ya... Like you can see right in my think pan, yo! That's some wicked shit right there!" This lady seemed nice, it helped calm him down tremendously.

Dolarosa smiled and nodded again. She looked at his horns, his hair, his eyes, the colour of his tongue... "Do you happen to know who your ancestor is?" she asked, having an uneasy feeling of who it was already.

"I ain't never known the fucker. My custodian wasn't there when I was growin up neither, so I just up n raised myself." And Gamzee had thought he'd done a pretty decent job of it.

"Oh? And do you do any recreational drugs? Prescription?" Dolarosa asked curiously, wondering what had kept the lid on Gamzee's loosely contained sober self for so long.

"I bake the best damned pies in the whole motherfuckin world! Made from the prime-est shit I got straight outta my recuperacoon." Gamzee beamed with a bit of smug pride. No one made pies like he did.

"Oh, really?" That would make sense... Sopor did have quite a numbing and debilitating affect on one's mind, like a drug. "How often do you eat them? And when you don't, what tends to happen?"

"Well...Karkat's been makin sure I got one twice a day...n if I don't eat one I get a pain in my head then i pass out, i think, n I wake up where I wasn't before."

"So you black out... Have you ever remembered what you've done, during these times you black out?" Dolarosa asked as she leaned forward, looking concerned.

"Does shit go down when I pass out?" Gamzee looked at her, confused. He didn't understand what she was implying.

"I don't know, Gamzee, you have to tell me," Dolarosa replied to him with a knowing smile.

He tilted his head. "Well shit, lady, I don't know either! I don't remember a thing!"

"I see." It looked like Gamzee had no knowledge of his black outs. She believed him... The rage he'd shown before, the pure hatred, the way he looked... It would kill a person to have to remember the way that felt at all times. "Tell me about your matesprite again... Tavros?"

"Ahhh, shit, man, I could be up talking bout my Tavbro for motherfuckin ever!" Gamzee prattled and rambled on and on about Tavros and how cute he was, Dolorosa only cut him off when he started to talk about the more lewd side of his matesprite.

"That's good enough. Where is he now?" Dolarosa asked curiously, brow knitted together. She was almost done with her assessment.

Gamzee's punch-drunk, happy face fell into a deep frown. "...I hurt 'im real bad one time. Don't know how or why I did it, but he was just...lyin there...he wan't movin...'n I thought he up and fuckin died." He looked down and away, not wanting to think about Tavros being cooped up, unmoving in that hospital, and...oh god, their grubs...He'd forgotten about their grubs. ""n the grubs...fuck..."

"Grubs? You have grubs together?" Dolarosa's eyebrows arced up suspiciously. "What was his last name?" She took out a pet and a pad and wrote down Tavros' first name. She would have to pay him a visit... And get more details. "And your Moirail's name as well. This will help your case."

"Nitram! Tavros Nitram, 'n Karkat Vantas is my moirail. Then there's Dave too I guess..." He added with a tint of irritation. He and Dave got along a bit better, but they still didn't like each other.

Dolarosa wrote them both down and nodded as she got up to her feet. "Thank you for your time, Gamzee. I believe I can help you out of this. But it will take a lot of cooperation. How soon will you need a pie?"

"I ain't had one in a while...Sooner the better, yo." Gamzee perked up a bit, "can you make me a pie? That'd be the motherfuckin bitch tits!"

"I'll see what I can do," Dolarosa replied with a smile. She reached over the table to pat Gamzee on to shoulder. "Don't worry, dear, I know what to do for you. You're not going to go to prison." With that, she sauntered out the door, notes in hand.


End file.
